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NEW    LANDS     ' 
WITHIN    THE    ARCTIC    CIRCLE. 


NARRATIVE   OF   THE   DISCOVERIES 

OF    THE    AUSTRIAN    SHIP    «  TEGETTHOFF" 

IN  THE    YEARS    1872-1874. 


BY 

JULIUS    PAYER,  . 

ONE    OF    THE    COMMANDERS     OF    THE    EXPEDITION. 


WITH  MAPS  AND  NUMEROUS  ILLUSTRATIONS  FROM  DRAWINGS 
BY  THE  AUTHOR. 


from  %  dfmtuw,  foiijj  %  g^wt^or's 


NEW   YORK: 
D.    APPLETON    AND    COMPANY, 

549  AND  551  BROADWAY. 

1877. 


Library 


AUTHOR'S    PREFACE. 

IN  laying  this  book  before  the  Public  I  desire,  in  the  first 
instance,  to  acknowledge  without  reserve  my  sense  of  the 
great  merits  of  my  colleague,  Lieutenant  Weyprecht.  The 
reader  of  the  following  pages  will  learn  with  what  unwearied, 
though  fruitless,  energy  he  struggled  to  free  the  Tegetthoff 
from  her  icy  prison,  and  what  dauntless  courage  and  unfailing 
command  of  resources  he  displayed  in  our  hazardous  retreat 
from  the  abandoned  ship,  till  the  moment  of  our  happy  rescue. 
The  order  and  discipline  maintained  on  board  ship,  and  in  the 
terrible  march  over  the  Frozen  Ocean,  as  well  as  in  the  peril-, 
ous  boat  voyage  after  leaving  the  ice-barrier,  were  mainly  due 
to  his  distinguished  abilities.  He  had  supreme  command  of 
Nthe  expedition,  as  long  as  its  duties  were  strictly  nautical ; 
when  the  operations  of  sledging  and  surveying  began,  I  had 
the  responsibility  of  a  separate  and  independent  command. 

Nor  ought  I  to  be  slow  to  pay  my  tribute  of  respect  to  the 
perseverance  and  constant  self-denial  of  Lieutenant  Brosch 

^  and  Midshipman  Orel.  It  would  be  difficult  to  determine, 
whether  they  shone  more  as  officers  of  the  ship,  or  as 

^  observers  of  scientific  phenomena.  The  highly  important 
duty  of  managing  the  stores  and  provisions  was  discharged 
also  by  Lieutenant  Brosch  with  a  conscientiousness  that 
secured  the  confidence  of  all. 

To  the  watchful  skill  of  Dr.  Kepes  we  owed  it,  that  the 
health  and  constitution  of  the  members  of  the  expedition 
suffered  so  little  from  all  their  hardships  and  privations. 


vi  s.    <V        AUTHOR'S  PREFACE. 

The  conduct  of  the  crew  was  on  the  whole  praiseworthy. 
Their  obedience  to  command,  their  perseverance  and  resolu- 
tion shown  on  every  occasion,  will  be  cited  as  an  example  of 
what  these  virtues  and  qualities  can  achieve  amid  the  most 
appalling  dangers  and  trials. 

With  regard  to  my  narrative,  I  make  no  claim  for  it  founded 
on  its  literary  excellence ;  rather  I  sue  for  indulgence  to  its 
manifold  shortcomings.  I  have  not  written  for  the  man  of 
science,  though  I  have  not  shunned  a  few  scientific  details. 
Nor  have  I  aimed  at  presenting  a  record,  which  might  be  pro- 
fitable to  those  who  shall  follow  us  in  the  same  career  of 
discovery,  though  some  hints  will  be  found  in  my  pages  which 
will  not  be  without  their  use  to  those  who  may  consult  them 
for  information  and  guidance.  Rather  I  have  endeavoured  to 
narrate  our  sufferings,  adventures,  and  discoveries  in  a  manner 
which  shall  be  interesting  to  the  general  reader  who  reads  to 
amuse  himself. 

The  magnetical  and  meteorological  observations,  so  care- 
fully taken  and  tabulated  by  Weyprecht,  Brosch,  and  Orel, 
together  with  the  sketches  of  the  Fauna  of  the  Frozen  Ocean, 
drawn  by  myself  from  the  collection  of  Dr.  Kepes,  were 
presented  to  the  Imperial  Academy  of  Sciences  of  Vienna, 
and  will  in  due  "time  be  published  under  the  auspices  of 
that  august  body. 


PRELIMINARY    NOTICE 

BY   THE   TRANSLATOR. 

IT  will  be  interesting  to  English  readers  to  learn  a  few  par- 
ticulars concerning  the  two  leaders  of  the  Austrian  North 
Polar  Expeditions.  Carl  Weyprecht  was  born  in  Hesse- 
Darmstadt  in  1838,  and  in  his  eighteenth  year  entered  the 
Austrian  navy.  Ten  years  afterwards  he  was  present  at  the 
action  between  the  Austrian  and  Italian  fleets  at  Lissa — July 
20,  1 866 ;  was  promoted  to  the  rank  of  lieutenant  of  the 
second  class,  and  decorated  with  the  order  of  the  Iron  Cross 
in  recognition  of  his  services  in  that  battle.  It  was  shortly 
after  this,  that  Weyprecht  volunteered  to  take  the  command 
of  a  small  vessel,  manned  by  only  four  seamen,  which  was  to 
sail  from  Hammerfest  to  explore  the  Arctic  Ocean.  This 
dauntless  offer  was  the  basis  of  the  first  German  North  Polar 
expedition.  When,  however,  permission  to  act  in  this  capacity 
was  obtained,  Lieutenant  Weyprecht  was  serving  on  board 
the  Austrian  frigate  Elizabeth,  which  formed  one  of  the 
squadron  sent  by  the  Austrian  Government  to  bring  home  the 
body  of  the  ill-fated  Maximilian.  Immediately  on  his  return 
to  Europe  he  repaired  to  Gotha,  eager  to  place  his  services  at 
the  command  of  the  expedition  which  had  meantime  been 
planned  by  Petermann  and  a  committee  of  patrons  of  Arctic 
exploration.  But  unhappily,  just  at  this  moment  his  health, 
which  had  suffered  from  fever  caught  at  New  Orleans,  failed, 
and  the  command  of  the  expedition,  known  as  the  first 
German  North  Polar  Expedition  (May  24 — October  10,  1868), 
was  undertaken  by  Captain  Koldewey.  It  was  only  in  1871 
that  he  recovered  his  health,  and  in  the  June  of  that  year 


PRELIMINARY  NOTICE 


began,  in  the  Isbjorn,  his  life  of  Arctic  experience  and  dis- 
covery. In  the  following  year,  1872,  he  was  appointed  to  the 
naval  command  of  the  expedition  which  sailed  in  the  Tegetthoff, 
whose  strange  and  eventful  history  is  recorded  in  the  following 
pages. 

His  companion  and  colleague,  Julius  Payer,  was  born  at 
Schonau  in  Teplitz,  Bohemia,  in  1841,  and  received  his  edu- 
cation as  a  soldier  at  the  Wiener-Neustadt  Military  Academy, 
1856-59,  where  General  Sonnklar  was  his  teacher  in  geo- 
graphical science,  and  early  imbued  his  mind  with  a  love  for 
the  grandeurs  of  the  glacier  world.  With  the  rank  of  "  Ober- 
Lieutenant  "  he  served  in  the  campaign  of  1866  in  Italy,  and 
was  decorated  for  his  distinguished  services  at  the  battle  of 
Custozza.  Afterwards,  while  serving  with  his  regiment  in 
Tyrol,  he  gained  great  celebrity  as  one  of  the  most  successful 
Alpine  climbers,  and  turned  his  experience  as  a  mountaineer 
to  profit  in  his  surveys  of  the  Orteler  Alps  and  glaciers. 
Payer  gained  his  first  experience  as  an  Arctic  discoverer  in 
the  second  German  North  Polar  Expedition,  under  Koldewey 
and  Hegemann — June  15,  1869 — Sept.  n,  1870.  His  services 
during  that  expedition  were  of  a  most  distinguished  character. 
He  shared  in  the  most  important  discoveries  which  were  then 
*iade,  specially  those  of  Konig  Wilhelm's  Land,  and  of  the 
noble  Franz-Josef  Fjord.  He  acquired  in  East  Greenland 
the  experience  of  sledging,  which  was  of  such  eminent  use  in 
his  explorations  of  the  great  discovery  of  the  Tegetthoff 
Expedition — 'Kaiser  Franz-Joseph  Land.  He  shines  too  as 
an  author  in  his  descriptions  of  Greenland  scenes,  in  the  Secotid 
German  North  Polar  Voyage,  published  in  1874  by  Brockhaus 
of  Leipzig,  and  partially  reproduced  in  an  English  translation 
by  the  Rev.  L.  Mercier  and  Mr.  H.  W.  Bates.  For  these 
services,  on  the  return  of  the  expedition,  he  was  again  decor- 
ated, receiving  the  order  of  the  Iron  Crown. 

In  the  voyage  of  the  Isbjorn,  June  21 — Oct.  4,  1871,  we 
find  him  associated  with  Weyprecht  in  the  pioneering  voyage 
described  in  the  earlier  part  of  this  work,  and  lastly  as  joint 
commander  of  the  renowned  TegettJioff  expedition,  June,  1872 
— September,  1874. 


BY  THE  TRANSLATOR.  ix 

The  Gold  Medals  entrusted  to  the  Royal  Geographical 
Society  were  awarded  in  1875  :  the  Founder's  Medal  to 
Lieutenant  Weyprecht,  and  the  Patron's  Medal  to  Lieutenant 
Julius  Payer. 

As  these  pages  are  passing  through  the  Press,  the  country 
has  been  deeply  moved  by  the  unexpected  intelligence  of  the 
return  of  the  Arctic  Expedition.  Gratulations  on  its  safe  and 
happy  return  have  been  unanimously  and  eagerly  expressed 
by  all  the  organs  of  public  opinion.  Disappointment,  how- 
ever, has,  we  fear,  fallen  on  many  minds  as,  after  the  first 
feelings  of  joy  at  the  safe  arrival  of  the  officers  and  crews  of 
the  Alert  and  Discovery,  they  read  the  brief  telegraphic 
summary  sent  by  Captain  Nares  :  "  Pole  impracticable,"—- 
"  No  land  to  northward."  Popular  enthusiasm  looked  rather 
for  the  conquest  of  the  Pole  ;  expected,  perhaps,  to  read,  one 
day,  that  the  Union  Jack  had  been  hoisted  there,  to  com- 
memorate the  triumph  of  England's  perseverance  at  last 
rewarded.  Few,  we  apprehend,  would  pass  through  the 
chill  of  these  two  clauses  of  the  message  to  mark  the  hope 
contained  in  the  third — "  voyage  otherwise  successful."  In 
what  special  respects  the  success  proclaimed  was  achieved,  we 
must  patiently  wait  for  a  future  record  to  reveal  ;  but  whij^ 
awaiting  the  history  which  no  doubt  will  be  written  to  justify 
and  prove  this  announcement,  let  us  exercise  our  loyal  belief 
in  the  skill  and  courage  of  our  countrymen,  and  feel  persuaded 
that  what  men  could  do  under  their  circumstances  no  doubt 
was  done  by  them. 

The  interest  which  will  be  excited  afresh  in  Arctic  discovery 
and  adventure,  will  doubtless  sharpen  the  interest  in  the 
volumes  which  record  the  fortunes  of  the  Austrian  expedi- 
tion ;  and  we  venture  to  affirm — without  undue  partiality— 
that,  though  the  history  of  Arctic  exploration  and  discovery 
abounds  in  records  of  lofty  resolution  and  patient  endurance 
of  almost  incredible  hardships,  the  narrative  of  the  voyage  of 
the  Tegetthoff  will  be  found  to  fall  below  none  in  these  high 
qualities.  The  mere  destiny  of  the  vessel  itself  equals,  if  it 
does  not  exceed,  in  the  element  of  the  marvellous,  anything 


PRELIMINARY  NOTICE 


which  has  before  been  recorded.  Surely  this  is  borne  out 
when  we  think,  that  on  August  20,  1872,  the  Tegetthoff  was 
beset  off  the  coast  of  Novaya  Zemlya ;  remained  a  fast 
prisoner  in  the  ice,  spite  of  all  the  efforts  made  by  her  officers 
and  crew  to  release  her ;  drifted  during  the  autumn  and  the 
terrible  winter  of  1872 — amid  profound  darkness — whither 
they  knew  not  ;  drifted  to  the  3Oth  of  August  in  the  following 
year  (1873),  till,  as  if  by  magic,  the  mists  lifted,  and  lo  !  a 
high,  bold,  rocky  coast — lat.  79°  43'  E.,  long.  59°  33' — loomed 
out  of  the  fog  straight  ahead  of  them.  Close  to  this  land — 
which  could  be  visited  with  safety  only  twice,  on  the  1st  and 
3rd  of  November  of  that  year — the  ship  remained  still  fast 
bound  in  the  ice.  Not  till  the  winter  of  1873  had  passed, 
and  the  sun  had  again  returned,  was  it  possible  to  explore 
the  land,  which  had  been  so  marvellously  discovered.  On  the 
roth  of  March,  1874,  the  sledge  journeys  commenced,  and 
terminated  May  3rd,  after  450  miles  had  been  passed  over, 
and  the  surveys  and  explorations  completed,  which  enabled 
Payer  to  write  the  description  of  Kaiser  Franz-Josef  Land 
(pp.  258-270),  which  shows  that  other  still  undefined  lands, 
with  an  archipelago  of  islands,  have  been  added  to  the 
geography  of  the  earth. 

But  the  perils  of  the  expedition  did  not  end  here.  On 
the  2Oth  of  August,  1874,  it  was  resolved  to  abandon  the 
Tegetthoff  in  the  ice,  and  to  return  in  sledges  and  boats  to 
Europe.  Captain  Nares  tells  us,  in  his  telegraphic  despatch, 
that  the  sledging  parties  of  the  Alert  and  Discovery  com- 
passed on  an  average  one-and-a-quarter  mile  per  day  on  the 
terrible  "  Sea  .  of  Ancient  Ice,"  and  discovered,  after  the 
experience  gained  in  seventy  miles  passed  under  these  condi- 
tions, that  the  "  Pole  was  impracticable."  If  our  readers 
wish  to  have  a  conception  of  the  toils  and  perils  of  the 
Austrian  sledge  parties  on  their  return  from  the  TegettJioff,  let 
them  mark  the  single  image  presented  to  the  mind  by  the 
statement  (p.  364): — "After*  the  lapse  of  two  months  of 
indescribable  efforts,  the  distance  between  us  and  the  ship 
was  not  more  than  nine  English  miles."  Had  the  ice  on  the 
Novaya  Zemlya  seas  remained  as  obstinate  as  it  seems  to 


BY  THE  TRANSLATOR. 


have  done  in  the  new  desolation,  the  "  Sea  of  Ancient  Ice/' 
escape  would  have  been  as  impossible  to  the  Tegetthoff's  crew, 
as  advance  towards  the  Pole  was  to  the  sledge  parties  of  our 
last  Arctic  expedition.  But  fortunately,  soon  after,  "  leads  " 
opened  out  in  the  ice  ;  the  boats  were  launched,  and  after 
about  another  month  of  alternate  rowing  and  sledging,  the 
ice  barrier  was  happily  reached  in  the  unusually  high  latitude 
77°  40'  ;  and  the  brave  men  who  three  months  before  had  left 
the  Tegetthoff  were  saved. 

This  is  perhaps  the  most  marked  analogy  between  the  perils 
of  the  two  expeditions ;  so  far  as  those  of  our  own  are  yet 
known.  But  the  scientific  conclusions  of  Lieutenant  Payer, 
as  set  forth  in  the  general  Introduction  to  his  narrative,  strik- 
ingly harmonize  with  the  actual  discoveries  of  the  Alert  and 
Discovery.  Already  it  is  authoritatively  announced,  that  there 
is  no  open  Polar  Sea  ;  that  this  hypothesis  is  as  baseless  as 
the  existence  of  President's  Land.  In  the  fourth  chapter  of 
that  Introduction  (pp.  25-31),  our  author  has  analysed  with 
great  sagacity  the  various  theories  on  which  that  hypothesis 
was  made  to  rest,  working  up  to  the  conclusion,  that  no  such 
sea  exists.  The  demonstration  of  experience  now  takes  the 
place  of  enlightened  argument  and  opinion  ;  fact  and  theory 
are  here  at  one. 

Nor  can  we  forbear  to  direct  attention  to  another  statement 
in  the  same  chapter.  Let  our  readers  mark. the  prophetic 
spirit  of  the  following  passage  :  "  All  the  changes  and  pheno- 
mena of  this  mighty  network  lead  us  to  infer  the  existence  of 
frozen  seas  up  to  the  Pole  itself ;  and  according  to  my  own 
experience,  gained  in  three  expeditions,  I  consider  that  the 
states  of  the  ice  between  82°  and  90°  N.  L.  will  not  essentially 
-differ  from  those  which  have  been  observed  south  of  latitude 
82° ;  I  incline  rather  to  the  belief  that  they  will  be  found 
worse  instead  of  better"  (p.  30).  And  "worse  instead  of 
better  "  they  have  been  found,  as  we  cannot  doubt,  when  we 
weigh  the  ominous  significance  of  the  designation  the  "  Sea 
of  Ancient  Ice." 

History  may  or  may  not  verify  the  position  which  the 
telegram  so  briefly  resumes — "The  Pole  impracticable." 


xii  PRELIMINARY*NOTICE 

Impracticable  no  doubt  it  was,  if  the  condition  of  the  ice  seen 
by  our  expedition  in  that  awful  sea  be  its  normal  condition. 
All  that  it  was  possible  for  men  to  dare  and  achieve,  England 
will  feel  that  her  officers  and  sailors  dared  and  achieved  under 
the  circumstances  they  encountered.  It  may  be,  that  later 
experience  will  show,  that  even  that  Sea  may  present  to 
future  explorers  an  aspect  less  tremendous  ;  yea,  that  in  some 
seasons,  which  science  may  yet  predict,  when  her  theories  of 
the  sun-spots  are  matured  and  formulated,  open  water  will  be 
found,  as  perhaps  it  was  found  in  the  year  of  the  expedition 
of  the  Polaris,  where  the  heroic  sledging  parties  from  the 
Alert  and  Discovery  saw  nothing  and  found  nothing,  but 
piled-up  barriers  of  ice  rising  to  the  height  of  150  feet. 

It  would  be  idle  to  predict,  in  the  face  of  these  results,  that 
the  Pole  shall  yet  be  reached.  Any  confident  prediction  in 
this  spirit  would,  at  the  present  moment,  be  singularly 
inopportune,  as  well  as  unwise.  But  despair  would  be  equally 
unjustifiable,  while  its  influence  would  be  most  hurtful  and 
depressing,  especially  if  Arctic  exploration  and  the  attain- 
ment of  the  Pole  were  supposed  to  be  identical  propositions. 
There  are  two  things  :  reaching  the  North  Pole,  and  the 
exploration  of  the  Polar  region.  If  the  former  appeals  more 
to  the  imagination,  and  readily  calls  forth  the  emotions  which 
are  fed  by  the  love  of  the  marvellous,  'the  latter  enlists  the 
sympathies  of  those  who  take  a  broader  view  of  the  necessities 
of  Arctic  exploration.  These  have  found  a  powerful  repre- 
sentative in  one  whose  services  entitle  him  to  speak  with 
authority,  in  the  naval  chief  of  the  Tegetthoff  expedition.  At  a 
meeting  of  the  German  Scientific  and  Medical  Association 
held  at  Gratz  in  September  of  1875,  Weyprecht  read  a  paper 
on  the  principles  of  Arctic  exploration,  in  which,  according 
to  the  summary  of  its  contents,  which  appeared  in  Nature, 
October  n,  1875,  he  maintains,  that  the  Polar  regions  offer,  in 
certain  important  respects,  greater  advantages  than  any  other 
part  of  the  globe  for  the  observation  of  natural  phenomena — 
Magnetism,  the  Aurora,  Meteorology,  Geology,  Zoology,  and 
Botany.  He  deplores,  that  while  large  sums  have  been  spent 
and  much  hardship  endured  for  geographical  knowledge, 


BY  THE  TRANSLATOR.  xiii 

strictly  scientific  observations  have  been  regarded  as  holding 
a  secondary  place.  Though  not  denying  the  importance  of 
geographical  discovery,  he  maintains,  that  the  main  purpose 
of  future  Arctic  expeditions  should  be  the  extension  of  our 
knowledge  of  the  various  natural  phenomena  which  may  be 
studied  with  so  great  advantage  in  those  regions.  He  insists 
in  that  paper  on  the  following  propositions  : — "  I.  Arctic  ex- 
ploration is  of  the  highest  importance  to  a  knowledge  of  the 
laws  of  nature.  2.  Geographical  discovery  in  those  regions  is 
of  superior  importance  only  in  so  far  as  it  extends  the  field 
of  scientific  investigation  in  its  strict  sense.  3.  Minute  Arctic 
topography  is  of  secondary  importance.  4.  The  geographical 
Pole  has  for  science  no  greater  significance  than  any  other 
point  in  high  latitude.  5.  Observation  stations  should  be 
selected  without  reference  to  the  latitude,  but  for  the  advan- 
tages they  offer  for  the  investigation  of  the  phenomena  to  be 
studied.  6.  Interrupted  series  of  observations  have  only  a 
relative  value."  The  suggestions  thrown  out  by  Lieutenant 
Weyprecht  have  been  taken  up  by  one  whose  mind  seems  to 
rise  instinctively  to  all  high  aims  and  objects.  Prince  Bismarck 
forthwith  appointed  a  German  Commission  of  Arctic  Explor- 
ation, consisting  of  some  of  the  most  eminent  men  of  science 
of  whom  Germany  can  boast,  who  reported  to  the  Bundesrath 
in  a  memoir,  the  recommendations  of  which  were  unanimously 
adopted.  From  Nature,  November  n,  1875,  which  we  have 
already  quoted,  we  borrow  the  following  resume  of  that 
report : — 

"  i.  The  exploration  of  the  Arctic  regions  is  of  great 
importance  for  all  branches  of  science.  The  Commission 
recommends  for  such  exploration  the  establishment  of  fixed 
observing  stations.  From  the  principal  station,  and  supported 
by  it,  exploring  expeditions  are  to  be  made  by  sea  and  by  land. 

"  The  Commission  is  of  opinion  that  the  region  to  be 
explored  by  organised  German  Arctic  explorers  is  the  great 
inlet  to  the  higher  Arctic  regions  situated  between  the  eastern 
shore  of  Greenland  and  the  western  shore  of  Spitzbergen. 


xiv        PRELIMINARY  NOTICE  BY  THE  TRANSLATOR. 

"  3.  It  appears  desirable,  and,  so  far  as  scientific  prepara- 
tions are  concerned,  possible,  to  commence  these  Arctic 
expeditions  in  1877. 

"4.  The  Commission  is  convinced  that  an  exploration  of 
the  Arctic  regions,  based  on  such  principles,  will  furnish  valu- 
able results,  even  if  limited  to  the  region  between  Greenland 
and  Spitzbergen  ;  but  it  is  also  of  opinion,  that  an  exhaustive 
solution  of  the  problems  to  be  solved  can  only  be  expected 
when  exploration  is  extended  over  the  whole  Arctic  zone,  and 
when  other  countries  take  their  share  in  the  undertaking. 

"  The  Commission  recommends,  therefore,  that  the  principles 
adopted  for  the  German  undertaking  be  commended  to  the 
governments  of  the  states  which  take  interest  in  Arctic  inquiry, 
in  order  to  establish,  if  possible,  a  complete  circle  of  observing 
stations  in  the  Arctic  zones." 

Thus  we  are  brought  face  to  face  with  two  different  purposes, 
which  may  be  termed,  respectively,  the  romantic  .and  the 
scientific  purposes  of  Arctic  discovery.  To  the  former  the 
attainment  of  the  Pole  has  hitherto  been  the  all  in  all  of  a 
geographical  discovery.  "  The  Pole  impracticable,"  tele- 
graphed by  Captain  Nares,  as  the  result  of  the  expedition 
which  has  returned  baffled  to  our  shores,  is  a  stern  reproof 
to  all  who  would  still  advocate  a  dash  at  the  Pole  as  the 
worthiest  purpose  of  Arctic  discovery.  Aims  and  endeavours 
not  so  glaring,  nor  appealing  in  the  same  degree  to  the  love 
of  the  marvellous,  are  suggested  in  the  sagacious  proposals 
of  Lieutenant  Weyprecht,  to  whom  science  will  not  refuse 
her  calmer  and  more  measured  respect,  and  in  whom,  as 
Captain  of  the  Tegetthoff,  all  who  love  deeds  of  daring  and 
energy  will  find  a  congenial  spirit. 

To  Lieutenant  Payer  has  fallen  the  distinguished  honour  of 
being  not  only  the  colleague  in  command  and  friend  of 
Weyprecht,  but  the  historian  of  their  common  sufferings  and 
common  glory  in  an  enterprise,  the  fame  of  which  the  world, 
we  believe,  will  not  willingly  let  die. 


CONTENTS. 

INTRODUCTION. 
CHAPTER  I. 

THE  FROZEN  OCEAN page  I— Io 


I.  The  ice-sheet  of  the  Arctic  region,— 2.  "Leads"  and  "  ice-holes "  defined.— 
3.  Pack-ice  and  drift-ice. — 4,  5,  6.  Various  designations  of  ice-forms. — 
7.  Estimate  of  the  thickness  of  ice. — 8.  Rate  of  its  formation. — 9.  Old  ice. 
— IO,  II.  Characteristics  of  young  ice. — 12.  Results  of  the  unrest  in  Arctic 
seas. — 13.  The  snow-sheet  described. — 14.  Colour  of  field-ice. — 15.  Charac- 
teristics of  sea-ice. — 16.  Specific  gravity  of  ice. — 17.  Irregularity  of  the 
forms  of  ice. — 18.  Temperature  of  the  Arctic  Sea. — 19.  Noise  caused  by  dis- 
ruption.— 20.  The  ice-blink. — 21.  The  water-sky. — 22.  Evaporation. — 23. 
Calmness  of  the  sea  beneath  the  ice. — 24.  Overturning  of  icebergs. — 25. 
Change  of  the  sea's  colour  near  ice. — 26.  Icebergs  described. — 27.  Noise 
caused  by  the  overturning  of  icebergs. 


CHAPTER  II. 

NAVIGATION   IN  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN page  II— K) 

I.  Preparatory  study  necessary  for  Polar  navigators. — 2.  Choice  of  a  favourable 
year  necessary. — 3.  Navigation  in  coast -water  recommended. — 4.  Failure 
often  caused  by  leaving  the  coast-water.  —  5.  Distance  possible  to  accomplish 
in  one  summer. — 6.  The  best  time  of  year. — 7.  Steam-power  recommended. 
— 8.  The  rate  of  speed. — 9.  The  build  of  Arctic  ships. — 10.  Tactics  of  a  ship 
in  the  ice. — n.  Small  vessels  preferred. — 12.  Iron  ships  not  suitable. — 13. 
Two  vessels  to  be  employed. — 14.  "Besetment"  and  how  to  avoid  it. — 
15.  The  use  of  a  balloon  recommended. — 16.  The  "crow's-nest." — 17.  Winds 
and  calms. — 18.  A  winter  harbour  or  "dock." 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  PENETRATION  OF  THE  REGIONS  WITHIN  THE  POLAR  CIRCLE  ; 
THE  PERIOD  OF  THE  NORTH-WEST  AND  NORTH-EAST  PAS- 
SAGES  page  20—24 

I.  The  Pole.— 2.  Old  fancy  of  reaching  India  through  the  ice.— 3,  4,  5.  The  first 
Polar  navigators.— 6-10.  The  North- West  and  North-East  Passages.— 1 1. 
Strange  tales  of  the  old  discoverers.— 12.  The  Polar  world  becomes  the  object 
of  scientific  investigation.— 13.  M'Clintock  perfects  the  art  of  sledging. 


xvi  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  INNER  POLAR   SEA page  25—31 

I.  The  Arctic  Sea  compared  to  the  glaciers  of  the  Alps. — 2,  3-  Old  fancies  re- 
specting an  Inner  Polar  Sea. — 4.  Improbability  of  such  a  sea  existing. — 
5.  Influence  of  the  Gulf  Stream.— 6.  The  Polynjii  seen  by  Wrangel.— 7. 
State  of  the  ice  in  different  years  as  found  by  various  expeditions. — 8.  Pro- 
bability that  the  most  northerly  regions  do  not  differ  from  those  already 
discovered. — 9.  Improbability  that  the  Pole  can  be  reached  by  a  ship. — 
10.  The  English  expedition  to  penetrate  Smith's  Sound. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE   FUTURE  OF  THE   POLAR   QUESTION page  32—36 

I.  Material  advantage  from  Arctic  voyages. — 2.  The  commercial  value  of  the 
North- West  and  North-East  Passages  no  longer  thought  of. — 3.  The  Polar 
question  a  problem  of  science. — 4.  The  increase  of  the  safety  and  convenience 
with  which  the  ice-navigation  is  now  performed.—  5.  The  means  of  conduct- 
ing Polar  expeditions  perfected.  —6.  Sledge  expeditions  afford  the  chief  hope 
of  success. — 7.  Not  much  more  to  be  expected  from  ships.— 8.  The  route  by 
Smith's  Sound  recommended. — 9.  The  English  expedition. — 10.  Lieutenant 
Weyprecht's  plan  for  united  scientific  investigation. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

POLAR   EQUIPMENTS page  37 — 46 

I.  Past  experience  to  be  consulted. — 2.  The  commander. — 3.  Selection  of  the 
crew.— 4.  Discipline  and  pay. — 5.  The  best  men  to  be  obtained. — 6.  Special 
qualifications. — 7.  The  medical  man. — 8.  An  artist  or  photographer  desirable. 
—9.  Old  ideas  of  equipment. — 10.  The  greatest  possible  comfort  necessary. 
— II.  A  table  of  the  sizes  of  the  vessels  in  various  expeditions. — 12.  The 
best  kind  of  ships. — 13.  The  allowance  of  food. — 14.  Spirituous  liquors. — 
15.  TK£  ship  becomes  a  house  in  the  winter. — 16.  The  quarters  of  the  men. 
—17.  Lamps  and  candles.— 18.  Clothing  of  the  crew.— 19.  Instruments  and 
ammunition. — 20.  The  cost  of  different  expeditions. 


THE  PIONEER  VOYAGE  OF  THE  ISBJORN page  49—69 

I.  A  pioneer  expedition  resolved  on. — 2,  3.  Route  to  the  east  of  Spitzbergen. 
— 4.  The  Isbjorn  chartered  for  the  service. — 5.  Attempts  to  gain  information 
on  the  probable  state  of  the  ice. — 6.  An  unfavourable  ice-year  predicted. — 
7.  The  expedition  leaves  Tromsoe. — 8.  The  coast  of  .Norway  described. — 
9.  The  Isbjorn  in  the  ice.  — 10.  Seeking  a  harbour. — n.  Cape  Look-out. — 
12.  Two  ships  met  with. — 13.  In  the  ice. — 14.  The  return  to  the  ice-barrier. 
— 15.  The  geological  formation  of  the  western  coast. — 16.  Arrive  at  Hope 
Island.— 17.  Ice  disappeared.— 1 8.  Whales  abound.— 19.  Splendid  effects  of 
colour. — 20.  In  a  sea. — 21.  A  run  along  the  west  coast,  of  Novaya  Zemlya. — 
22.  Storms  compel  us  to  keep  to  sea. — 23.  Object  of  the  voyage. — 24.  The 
Austro- Hungarian  Expedition  of  1872. — 25.  The  plan  of  the  Austro-Hungarian 
Expedition. 


CONTENTS. 


VOYAGE   OF  THE  "TEGETTHOFF." 
CHAPTER  I. 

FROM   BREMERHAVEN  TO  TROMSOE page  73~ 77 

I.  The  qualities  requisite  for  a  Polar  navigator.— 2.  The  crew  of  the  Tegetthoff.— 
3.  The  Tegetthoff  lifts  her  anchor. — 4.  The  vessel. — 5.  Crossing  the  sea. — 
6.  The  languages  spoken  on  board  the  Tegetthoff. — 7.  The  officers  and  crew  of 
the  Tegetthoff. — 8.  Arrive  at  Tromsoe.  —  9.  The  first  and  last  voyage  of  the 
Tegetthoff  begins. 

CHAPTER  II. 

ON  THE   FROZEN  OCEAN page  78 — 92 

I.  Within  the  frozen  ocean. — 2.  The  sea  of  Novaya  Zemlya. — 3.  We  continue 
our  course  by  steam. — 4.  The  decay  of  ice. — 5.  Effects  of  light. — 6.  We 
meet  the  Isbjb'rn. — 8-10.  The  Barentz  Islands  described  by  Professor  Hofer. 
— II.  Preparations  for  future  contests  with  the  ice. — 12.  Inclosed  in  the  land- 
ice.— 13.  We  celebrate  the  birthday  of  Francis  Joseph  I. — 14.  Our  prospects 
do  not  improve. — 15.  The  Tegetthoff  finally  beset. 


CHAPTER  III. 

DRIFTING  IN  THE  NOVAYA  ZEMLYA  SEAS 


I.  Winter  begins.  —  2.  The  impossibility  of  reaching  the  coast  of  Siberia.  —  3. 
Unsuccessful  efforts  to  get  free.  —  4.  The  name-day  of  the  Emperor  Francis 
Joseph  I.  —  5.  Encounters  with  polar  bears.  —  6.  A  "snow-finch"  visits  the 
ship.  —  7.  Novaya  Zemlya  recedes  gradually  from  our  gaze. 


CHAPTER  IV. 
THE  "TEGETTHOFF"  FAST  BESET  IN  THE  ICE     .    .    .    page  101 — 113 

i.  Signs  indicate  the  insecurity  of  our  position. — 2.  A  dreadful  Sunday. — 3.  We 
make  ready  to  abandon  the  ship. — 4.  The  dogs. — 5.  We  return  to  the  ship. — 
6.  We  drift  in  the  Frozen  Sea. — 7.   Our  alarms. — 8.  Our  constant  state  of 
.  readiness  to  meet  destruction. 


CHAPTER  V. 

OUR   FIRST  WINTER   (1872)   IN  THE   ICE page  114—125 

I.  Surrounded  by  deep  twilight. — 2.  Our  preparations  for  winter. — 3.  The  difficulty 
of  sledge-travelling. — 4.  Sumbu  mistaken  for  a  fox  — 5.  The  rending  of  the 
ice. — 6.  Our  short  expeditions. — 7.  The  continual  threatening  of  the  ice. — 8. 
A  bear  shot.— 9.  The  effect  of  the  long  Polar  night— 10.  The  middle  of  the 
long  night. — 1 1.  Christmas  feasts. — 12.  The  first  hour  of  the  new  year. — 13. 
The  dogs  allowed  in  the  cabin.— 14.  Carlsen  writes  in  the  log-book. 

2 


xviii  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

LIFE  ON   BOARD  THE   "  TEGETTHOFF " page  126—1?$ 

I.  The  Tegetthoff  covered  with  snow. — 2.  The  excessive  condensation  of  moisture. 
—3.  The  destruction  of  the  snow  wall. — 4.  The  removal  of  the  tent  roof. — 
5.  The  stove  of  Meidingen  of  Carlsruhe. — 6.  The  arrangements  of  the  officers' 
mess-room. — 7.  Those  who  occupied  the  mess-room. — 8.  Our  meals. — 9. 
Divine  service  on  deck.  — 10.  After  dinner.  —  II.  The  monotony  of  our  life. 
— 12.  After  supper. — 13.  Middendorf  contrasting  the  influence  of  climate 
on  men. — 14.  Our  sanitary  condition. — 15.  Baths. — 16.  Passages  from  my 
journal.  — 17.  A  school  instituted. 


CHAPTER  VII. 
ICE-PRESSURES   ...............    page  139—142 

I.  Preparations  for  leaving  the  ship.  —  2.  Extracts  from  journal. 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE  WANE   OF  THE   LONG  POLAR   NIGHT       .....     page  143  —  148 

I.  The  light  increases.—  2.  A  bear  hunt.—  3.  Table  of  the  course  of  the  Te°etthoff. 
—  4.  Throw  out  bottles  inclosing  an  account  of  the  events  of  the  expedition. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

THE   RETURN   OF  LIGHT.  —  THE  SPRING  OF    1873   •      •      •     P&ge  1  49  —  l6l 


I.  The  sunrise.  —  2.  Our  first  look  at  each  other.  —  3.  Visits  from  bears.  —  4.  The 
carnival.  —  5.  Continual  fall  of  snow.  —  6.  Return  of  birds.  —  7.  Til  health  of 
Dr.  Kepes.  —  8.  Bear  shot.  —  9.  A  road  constructed.  —  10.  Reading  without 
artificial  light.  —  n.  Accumulation  of  rubbish  round  the  ship.  —  12.  Begin  to 
dig  out  the  ship.  —  13.  Surprised  by  bears.  —  14.  Our  hopes  to  reach  Siberia.  — 
15.  Snow  continues  to  fall.  —  16.  Visited  by  birds.  —  17.  The  steam  machinery 
put  in  working  order.  —  18.  A  partial  eclipse  of  the  sun.—  19.  Birth  of  four 
Newfoundland  puppies. 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE   SUMMER   OF    1873 page  162—172 

I.  Decay  of  the  walls  of  the  ice. — 2.  The  blaze  of  light  on  clear  days. — 3.  Our 
constant  digging. — 4.  Continual  sinking  of  the  ship. — 5.  Nothing  but  ice. — 
6.  Short  expeditions. — 7.  Feast  on  the  birthday  of  the  Emperor. — 8.  Table 
showing  our  change  of  place. — 9.  Some  paragraphs  from  the  Admiral's  report 
of  the  Tegetthoff. — 10.  Sounding  the  depth  of  the  sea. 

CHAPTER  XI. 
NEW  LANDS page  173 — 177 

I.  Seal-hunting. — 2.  Sunset  at  midnight. — 3.  The  second  summer  gone. — 4.  Land 
at  last. — 5.  Kaiser  Franz-Josef's  Land. — 6  Hochstetter  Island. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

THE  AUTUMN  OF   1873.— THE  STRANGE   LAND  VISITED   .     page  178—184 

I.  Autumn  of  1873. — 2.  Resolve  to  abandon  the  vessel. — 3.  Daylight  begins  to 
fail. — 4.  Everything  in  readiness  to  leave  the  ship. — 5*  Wilczek  Island. — 6. 
Our  joy  at  reaching  land. — 7.  Exploring  the  island. — 8.  An  expedition. — 9. 
The  silence  of  Arctic  Regions. — 10.  The  island  continues  a  mystery. 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

OUR  SECOND  WINTER   IN   THE   ICE page  185 — 198 

I.  Night  begins  to  reign. — 2.  Leisure  for  study.  —3.  Complete  darkness.— 4. 
Continual  fall  of  snow. — 5.  The  middle  of  the  second  Polar  night. — 6.  Ill 
temper  of  the  dogs. — 7.  The  dogs. — 8.  Pekel,  Sumbu,  and  Jubinal. — 9. 
Christmas  time. — 10.  Our  life  in  the  ship. — II.  Improvement  in  health. — 
12.  Scurvy. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 
SUNRISE  OF  1874 page  199—201 

I.    Return  of  the  moon. — 2.    Sun  appears  above   the   horizon. — 3.    Lieutenant 
Weyprecht  and  I  resolve  to  abandon  the  ship  after  the  sledge  journeys. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

THE  AURORA page  2O2 — 2IO 

I.  The  northern  lights. — 2-4.  The  appearance  of  the  aurora. — 5.  The  influence  on 
the  magnetic  needle. — 6.  Description  of  the  aurora  by  Lieutenant  Weyprecht. 


THE   SLEDGE  JOURNEYS. 
CHAPTER  I. 

THE     EXPLORATION     OF     KAISER     FRANZ-JOSEF     LAND 

.RESOLVED   ON page  21^— 21  ^ 

I.  Necessity  of  exploration. — 2.  Plan  of  the  sledge  journeys. — 3.  Eagerness  to 
begin.— 4.  Illness  of  Krisch. 

CHAPTER  II. 

OF   SLEDGE  TRAVELLING   IN   GENERAL       ....'..     page  2l6— 221 

I.  The  sledge  the  best  means  of  exploration. — 2.  The  coast  line  to  be  followed. — 
3.  Best  season  for  sledging.— 4.  State  of  the  snow-road.— 5.  The  formation 
of  depots.  —6.  Sledges  dragged  by  men  and  dogs  —7.  Sledging  best  performed 
by  dogs. — 8.  The  instruments  required  on  a  sledge  journey. 


xx  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  EQUIPMENT  OF  A  SLEDGE  EXPEDITION     ....     page  222—234 

I.  The  equipment  of  a  sledge. — 2.  Construction  of  our  sledges.— 3.  The  cooking 
apparatus. — 4.  Fuel. — 5.  Tents  used  at  night. — 6.  The  sleeping  bag. — 7. 
Arms  and  ammunition. — 8.  Chest  for  instruments,  &c. — 9,  10,  1 1.  The  pro- 
visions.— 12.  Boats  in  sledge  expeditions. — 13.  Articles  of  clothing. — 14. 
Furs. — 15.  Covering  for  the  feet.— 1 6.  Drawing  the  sledge. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

THE   FIRST  SLEDGE  JOURNEY page  235—245 

I.  Qualities  of  a  leader. — 2,  Object  of  our  first  expedition. — 3.  My  party. — 4.  We 
begin  our  journey. — 5.  Violent  motion  of  the  ice. — 6.  Conduct  of  the  dogs.— 
7.  Death  of  the  bear. — 8.  The  driving  snow. — 9.  Reach  the  plateau  of  Cape 
Tegetthoff. — 10.  Ascending  the  plateau. — n.  Night  in  the  sleeping  bag. — 12. 
Difficulty  of  dragging  the  sledge. — 13.  Ascend  a  mountain,  Cape  Littrow. 


CHAPTER  V. 
THE  COLD page  246 — 257 

I.  The  Sonklar  glacier. — 2.  Effect  of  cold. — 3.  The  frightful  .cold  of  North 
America. — 4.  Effect  of  low  temperature  on  the  human  frame. — 5.  The  voice 
in  cold  weather. — 6.  Hardness  of  everything. — 7.  Effect  of  cold  on  the  senses. 
— 8.  Protection  against  cold. — 9.  Danger  of  frost-bite. — 10.  Thirst. — n.  A 
block  of  snow. — 12.  Return  to  the  ship. — 13.  Death  of  Krisch. 

CHAPTER  VI. 

A  GENERAL  DESCRIPTION  OF  KAISER  FRANZ-JOSEF  LAND    page  258—270 

I.  Size  of  the  country. — 2.  Surface  of  ice. — 3.  Map  of  the  country. — 4.  Naming  of 
discoveries. — 5  Comparison  of  Arctic  lands. — 6.  The  existence  of  volcanic 
formations. — 7,  8.  Geology  of  Franz-Josef  Land. — 9.  Glaciers  of  Spitzbergen. 
—  10.  Ice  of  Franz-Josef  Land. — n.  Temperature  of  the  air. — 12.  The 
plasticity  of  the  glaciers.  —13.  North-east  of  Greenland  and  Siberia. — 14.  The 
vegetation. — 15.  Finding  drift-wood. — 1 6.  Impossibility  of  inhabiting  Franz- 
Josef  Land. — 17.  The  absence  of  animal  life. — 18.  Seals  abound. — 19.  Species 
of  fish  seen. — 20.  Birds. — 21.  The  collection  of  Dr.  Kepes. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE   SECOND   SLEDGE  EXPEDITION. — AUSTRIA  SOUND  .     page  271 — 294 

I.  Plan  of  second  expedition. — 2.  Danger  of  leaving  the  ship. — 3.  Visited  by 
bears. — 4.  Our  preparations  finished.— 5.  The  sledge  party. — 6.  Our  march. 
—7.  Torossy  wounded  by  a  bear.— 8.  Danger  of  frost-bite. — 9.  Arrive  at 
Cape  Frankfurt. — 10.  The  configuration  of  the  country.— n.  We  penetrate 
to  Cape  Hansa. — 12.  A  bear  killed. — 13.  I  examine  the  beach.— 14.  Loss  of 
the  dog  Sumbu. — 15.  Easter  Sunday. — 16.  Approach  of  a  bear. — 17.  Our 
canvas  boots  worn  out. — 18.  We  reach  Becker  Island, — 19.  We  lose  a  bear. 
— 20.  Direct  our  course  towards  Cape  Rath. — 21.  A  bear  shot.— 22.  Difficulty 
of  advancing. — 23.  We  arrive  at  Cape  Schrotter. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

IN  THE  EXTREME  NORTH page  295—313 

I.  We  ascend  the  summit  of  the  Dolerite  Rock. — 2.  Our  expedition  to  the  ex- 
treme north. — 3.  We  divide  the  provisions. — 4.  The  merits  of  our  dogs. — 
5.  Klotz  has  to  return. — 6.  Zaninovich  and  the  sledge  fall  into  a  crevasse. — 
7.  Reach  Cape  Habermann. — 8.  Cape  Brorok. — 9.  The  enormous  flocks  of 
birds.  — 10.  Difficulty  of  travelling. — n.  Cape  Saulen. — 12.  Reach  Cape 
Germania. — 13.  Cape  Fligely. — 14.  We  plant  the  Austro- Hungarian  flag. — 
15.  Document  inclosed  in  a  bottle. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  RETURN   TO  THE  SHIP page  314 — 335 

I.  Our  return  journey. — 2.  Observations  of  temperature. — 3.  Snow-blindness. — 
4.  A  bear  shot. — 5.  Reach  Cape  Hellwald. — 6.  Orel  continues  to  march 
southwards. — 7.  Reach  Cape  Tyrol. — 8.  Grandeur  of  the  scenery. — 9.  Find 
our  companions. — 10.  We  sink  in  the  snow. — n.  Arrive  at  open  sea. — 12. 
Over  the  glaciers  of  Wilczek  Land.  — 13.  Enveloped  in  whirling  snow.  — 14. 
Digging  out  our  depot. — 15.  The  difficulty  of  advancing. — 16.  Reach  Schonau 
Island. — 17.  I  find  the  ship. — 18.  The  ship  in  our  absence. 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE  THIRD   SLEDGE  JOURNEY page  336—340 

I.  Our  wish  to  explore  Franz-Josef  Land. — 2.  We  leave  the  ship. — 3.  The  dogs 
and  the  bears. — 4.  A  bear  killed. — 5.  Ascent  of  the  pyramid-like  Cape 
Briinn. — 6.  The  extreme  difficulty  of  the  ascent. — 7.  Return  to  the  ship. 


THE  «  TEGETTHOFF"  ABANDONED.—  RETURN 
TO  EUROPE. 

CHAPTER  I. 

LAST  DAYS   ON   THE  "  TEGETTHOFF  "      ......     page  343  —  347 

I.  "  Plundering  the  ship."  —  2.  Appearance  of  the  ship.  —  3.  Short  expeditions.  — 
4.  Rapid  decrease  of  the  cold.—  5.  The  boats  and  their  contents.—  6.  The 
dogs,  Gillis  and  Semlya,  shot.—  7.  Our  stock  of  clothes.—  8.  Our  plan  of 
escape. 

CHAPTER  II. 

ON   THE   FROZEN   SEA        ............     >*£*  348~  376 


I.  The  day  for  abandoning  the  ship  comes.—  2.  We  start.—  3.  The  dogs.—  4.  We 
return  to  the  ship  to  replenish  the  stores.—  5.  Shooting  bears.—  6.  Reach 
Lamont  Island.—  7.  Return  to  the  ship  for  the  jolly  boat.—  8.  Impatience  to 
launch  our  boats.  —  9.  Launch  at  last.  —  10.  Shoot  a  seal.  —  n.  Quotations 
from  the  journal.—  12.  Crossing  fissures.  —  13.  Disheartening  efforts.  —  14. 
From  one  floe  to  another.—  15.  Carlsen.—  16.  Life  hi  the  boats.—  17.  Our 


CONTENTS. 


dreadful  situation. — 18.  Our  rations  diminished. — 19.  Forcing  our  way. — 
20.  Pushing  floes  asunder. — 21.  No  advance,  but  great  efforts. — 22.  Delight 
caused  by  an  advance  of  four  miles  a  day. — 23.  Secure  a  bear. — 24.  Our 
progress  greatly  increases. — 25.  Ice-hummocks  everywhere. — 26.  'Alternate 
launching  and  drawing  up  the  boats. — 27.  Increased  progress. — 28.  The 
swell  of  the  ocean. — 29.  Shut  in  once  more. — 30.  Contrivances  to  pass  away 
the  time. — 31.  Calking  the  boats. — 32.  We  reach  the  open  sea. — 33.  Farewell 
to  the  Frozen  Ocean, 


CHAPTER  III. 
ON  THE  OPEN  SEA page  377 — 389 

I.  Sight  of  the  open  sea.— 2.  Compelled  to  kill  the  dogs.— 3.  We  take  a  last  look 
at  the  ice. — 4.  Fifty  miles  from  land. — 5-  We  sight  Novaya  Zemlya. — 6.  We 
hold  on  our  course. — 7.  Vain  attempt  to  land  on  Novaya  Zemlya. — 8.  Differ- 
ence in  the  climate  in  various  years. — 9.  Land  in  Gwosdarew  Bay. — 10.  Step  on 
land  once  more. — II.  Coast  of  Novaya  Zemlya. — 12.  Look  in  vain  for  a  sail. 
— 13.  Our  provisions  nearly  exhausted. — 14.  We  divide  the  remnant  of  food. 
— 15.  Deliverance  at  last. — 16.  The  schooner  Nikolai. — 17  Our  reception  on 
board. — 18.  We  hear  the  news  from  Europe. — 19.  Captain  Voronin  agrees  to 
take  us  to  Norway. — 20.  The  crew  of  the  Nikolai. — 21.  We  run  along  the 
coast  of  Lapland. — 22.  Landing  at  Vardo. — 23.  Reception. 


APPENDIX. 

I.   METEOROLOGICAL  OBSERVATIONS page  391—393 

II.   DIRECTION  AND   FORCE  OF  THE  WIND page  394 

INDEX 


LIST   OF    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


TWILIGHT  AT  MIDDAY— FEBRUARY,    1874      ....      Frontispiece 

THE  FIRST  ICE 53 

STILL  LIFE  IN  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN 79 

GWOSDAREW  INLET 84 

FORMATION  OF  THE  DEPOT  AT  "THE  THREE  COFFINS".    ...      89 

THE  "TEGETTHOFF"  AND  "ISBJORN"  SEPARATE 90 

THE  "TEGETTHOFF"  FINALLY  BESET 91 

ATTEMPTS  TO  GET  FREE  IN  SEPTEMBER 94 

SEAL-HUNTING — SEPTEMBER  1872 96 

SHOOTING  AT- A  TARGET,  OCTOBER  1872 97 

PARHELIA  ON  THE  COAST  OF  NOVAYA  ZEMLYA 99 

AN  OCTOBER  NIGHT  IN  THE  ICE 105 

THE  MOON  WITH  ITS  HALO 109 

OUR  COAL-HOUSE  ON  THE   FLOE Ill 

THE  TWILIGHT  IN   NOVEMBER   1872 H5 

SUMBU   CHASED   FOR  A   FOX Il6 

WANDERINGS  ON  THE  ICE   IN   OUR   FIRST  WINTER 117 

ENCOUNTER  WITH   A  POLAR   BEAR I2O 

ICE-HOLE  COVERED   WITH   YOUNG  ICE 121 

CARLSEN   MAKES  THE  ENTRY  IN  THE  LOG 124 

THE  "TEGETTHOFF"  IN  THE  FULL  MOON 127 

DIVINE   SERVICE  ON  DECK 13! 

ICE-PRESSURE   IN   THE  POLAR  NIGHT 140 

FRUITLESS  ATTEMPT  TO   RESCUE   MATOSCHKIN 145 

SUNRISE   (1873) 150 

THE  CARNIVAL  ON  THE  ICE 152 

THE  "TEGETTHOFF"  DRIFTING  IN  PACK-ICE. — MARCH  1873    .    .  155 

SOUNDING  IN  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN 17! 

APPROACHING  THE  LAND  BY  MOONLIGHT 183 

DEPARTURE  OF  THE  SUN  IN  THE  SECOND  WINTER 1 87 

NOON  ON  DECEMBER  21,  1873    •    •    •    .    . 189 

PEKEL,  SUMBU,  AND  JUBINAL 193 

JN  THE  MESS-ROOM 196 

THE  AURORA  DURING  THE   ICE-PRESSURE 204 

KRISCH,  THE   ENGINEER 21$ 

TEAM   OF  SEVEN   MEN  AND  THREE  DOGS 224 

THE   COOKING  APPARATUS 224 

THE   SLEDGE  WITH   ITS   LOAD 229 

THE  DRESS  OF  THE  ARCTIC   SLEDGER 231 

TOROSSY   IN   HARNESS 234 

CAPE  TEGETTHOFF 242 

MELTING  SNOW  DURING  A   HALT  NEAR   CAPE   BERGHAUS       ...  244 

ON  THE  SONKLAR-GLACIER 247 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE 

BLOCK   OF  SNOW 254 

THE   BURIAL  OF   KRISCH 256 

LIPARIS  GELATINOSUS 266 

HIPPOLYTE   PAYERI 268 

HYALONEMA  LONGISSIMUM 268 

UMBELLULA 269 

KORETHRASTES   HISPIDUS 270 

NEPHTHYS   LONGISETOSA 270 

THE  DOGS   DIFFER  AS  TO  THE  TREATMENT  OF  YOUNG  BEARS       .  273 

THE  WINTER  HOLE  OF  A  BEAR 277 

LIFE   IN  THE  TENT .  279 

CAPE    FRANKFURT,   AUSTRIA   SOUND,  AND  THE   WULLERSDORF 

MOUNTAINS 280 

HOW  SUMBU  WAS  LOST .  284 

CAPE  EASTER  AND  STERNEK  SOUND 285 

HOW  WE  RECEIVED  BEARS.     CAPE  TYROL  IN  THE  BACKGROUND  286 

DINING  ON  BEARS'  FLESH 287 

CUTTING  UP  THE  BEARS 292 

ICEBERGS  AT  THE  BASE  .OF  THE  MIDDENDORF  GLACIER     .    .    .  298 

THE     SLEDGE    FALLS    INTO    A    CREVASSE    ON    THE    MIDDENDORF 

GLACIER 300 

KLOTZ'S  AMAZEMENT 3O2 

THE  ALARM   OF  THE  HOHENLOHE  PARTY 303 

HALT  UNDER  CROWN-PRINCE   RUDOLF'S  LAND 305 

CAPE  AUK 307 

CAPE   SAULEN 309 

THE  AUSTRIAN   FLAG  PLANTED  AT  CAPE  FLIGELY 311 

MELTING   SNOW  ON   CAPE  GERMANIA 315 

ENCAMPING  ON   ONE  OF  THE  COBURG  ISLANDS 318 

THE     VIEW     FROM     CAPE     TYROL.        COLLINSON     FIORD— WIENER 

NEUSTADT  ISLAND 321 

BREAKING  IN 323 

ARRIVAL  BEFORE  THE  OPEN  SEA 325 

DRAGGING  THE   SLEDGE  UNDER  THE  GLACIERS  OF  WILCZEK   LAND  326 

THE   SLEDGE   IN  A  SNOW-STORM 328 

DIGGING  OUT  THE   DEPOT 329 

THE  MIDNIGHT  SUN   BETWEEN   CAPE   BERGHAUS  AND   KOLDEWEY 

ISLAND 331 

THE  "TEGETTHOFF"  DESCRIED      332 

KLOTZ ' 333 

MARKHAM  SOUND,  RICHTHOFEN  PEAK  FROM  CAPE  BRUNN     .    .  338 

FIRST  ABANDONMENT  OF  THE  "TEGETTHOFF" 348 

IN  THE  HARBOUR  OF  AULIS 352 

WE  LAUNCH  AT  LAST 355 

MARCHING  THROUGH   ICE-HUMMOCKS 357 

HALT  AT  NOON 358 

CROSSING  A  FISSURE 359 

CARLSEN 361 

SCENE  ON  THE  ICE 366 

BEARS  IN  THE  WATER 371 

_ CALKING  THE  BOATS 374 

'FAREWELL  TO  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN 375 

LANDING  ON  THE  COAST  OF   NOVAYA  ZEMLYA 380 

THE   BAY  OF  DUNES.      THE   RUSSIAN   SCHOONERS 385 


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AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC   VOYAGES. 


INTRODUCTION. 
CHAPTER  I. 

THE  FROZEN   OCEAN. 

I.  THE  ice-sheet  spread  over  the  Arctic  region  is  the  effect 
and  sign  of  the  low  temperature  which  prevails  within  it. 
During  nine  or  ten  months  of  the  year  this  congealing  force 
continues  to  act,  and  if  the  frozen  mass  were  not  broken  up 
by  the  effects  of  sun  and  wind,  of  rain,  waves,  and  currents, 
and  by  the  rents  produced  in  it  from  the  sudden  increase  of 
cold,  the  result  would  necessarily  be  an  absolutely  impene- 
trable covering  of  ice.  The  parts  of  this  enormous  envelope 
of  ice  sundered  by  these  various  causes  now  become  capable 
of  movement,  and  are  widely  dispersed  in  the  form  of  ice- 
fields and  floes. 

-  2.  The  water-ways  which  separate  these  parts  are  called 
"leads,"  or,  when  their  -extent  is  considerable,  "ice-holes." 
The  meshes  of  this  vast  net,  which  is  constantly  in  motion, 
open  and  close  under  the  action  of  winds  and  currents  in 
summer ;  and  it  is  only  in  its  southern  parts  that  the  action 
of  waves,  rain,  and  thaw  produces  any  considerable  detach- 
ments. Towards  the  end  of  autumn,  the  ice,  forming  anew, 
consolidates  the  interior  portions,  while  its  outer  edge  pushes 
forward,  like  the  end  of  a  glacier,  into  lower  regions,  until 


2  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

about  the  end  of  February  the  culminating  point  of  congela- 
tion is  attained.  Motionless  adhesion  of  the  fields,  which 
naturally  reach  their  greatest  size  in  winter,  does  not,  how- 
ever, exist  even  then ;  for  during  this  period  they  are 
incessantly  exposed  to  displacement  and  pressure  from  the 
currents  of  the  sea  and  the  air. 

3.  When  the  ice  is  more  or  less  closed,  so  as  to  render 
navigation  impossible,  it  is  called  "  pack-ice,"  and  "  drift-ice  " 
when  it  appears  in  detached  pieces  amid  predominating  water. 
Since  there  are  forces  operating  which  promote  the  loosening 
process  at  its  outer  edge,  and  its  consolidation  within,  it  is 
self-evident,  that  the  interior  portions  tend  to  the  character  of 
"  pack-ice,"  and  its  outer  margin  to  that  of  "  drift-ice."     This 
general  rule,  however,  is  so  modified  in  many  places,  by  local 
causes,  currents,  and  winds,  that  we  find  not  unfrequently  at 
the  outer  margin  of  the  ice  thick  barriers  of  pack-ice,  and  in 
the  inner  ice,  ice-holes  (polynia  1)  and  drift-ice. 

4.  Ice  navigation,  during  its  course  of  three  hundred  years, 
has  created  a  number  of  terms  to  designate  the  external  forms 
of  ice,  the  meaning  of  which  must  be  clearly  'defined.     Ice 
formed  from  salt-water  is  called  "  field-ice  ;  "  that  from  the 
waters  of  rivers  and  lakes  "sweet-water  ice."     The  latter  is 
as  hard  as  iron,  and  so  transparent  that  it  is  scarcely  to  be 
distinguished  from  water.    Icebergs  are  masses  detached  from 
glaciers.     The  words  "patch,"  "floe/'  "field,"  express  relative 
magnitude,  descriptive  of  the  smallest  ice-table  up  to  the  ice- 
field of  many  miles  in  diameter.    The  term  "floe,"  however,  is 
generally  applied  to  every  kind  of  field-ice,  without  reference 
to  its  size.     The  ice  which  lies  along  coasts,  or  which  adheres 
to  a  group   of  islands  within  a   sound,  is  called  "land-ice." 
Sledge  expeditions  depend  on   its   existence  and   character. 
Along  the  coast-edge  land-ice  is  broken  by  the  waves  and 
tide,  and   the  forms  of  its  upheaval  and  deposition   on  the 
shore   constitute  the    so-called    "ice-foot."       Broken    ice,  or 
"  brash,"  is  an  accumulation  of  the  smaller  fragments  of  ice 
which  are  found   only  on  the -extreme  edge  of  the  ice-belt. 
"  Bay-ice  "  is  ice  of  recent  formation,  and  its  vertical  depth  is 
inconsiderable. 

1  Polynia,  a  Russian  term  for  an  <ppen  water  space.  — Glossary  in  Kane's  Arctic 
Explorations,  vol.  i.,  p.  14. 


CHAP.  I.]  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN.  3 

5.  Land-ice  is  less  exposed  to  powerful  disturbances,  and 
its  surface,  therefore,  is  comparatively  level,  and  is  only  here 
and  there  traversed  by  small  hillocks  called  "  hummocks  "  or* 
"torrosy."     These  are  the  results  of  former  pressures,   and 
they  are  gradually  reduced  to  the  common  level  by  evapora- 
tion, by  thawing,  and 'by  the  snow  drifting  over  them. 

6.  But   ice-floes  exposed   to  constant   motion  from  winds 
and  currents,  and  to  reciprocal- pressure,  have  a  more  or  less 
undulating  character.     On  these  are  found  piles  of  ice  heaped 
one  upon  another,  rising  to  a  height  of  twenty  or  even  fifty . 
feet,  alternating  with  depressions,  which  collect  the  thawed 
water  in  clear  ice-lakes  during  the  few  weeks  of  summer  in 
which  the  temperature  rises  above  the  freezing  point.     The 
specific  gravity  of  this  water,  where  it  does  not  communicate 
with  the  sea  by  cracks,  is   in  all  cases  the  same  with  the 
specific  gravity  of  pure  sweet  water ;  and  as  the  salt  is  gra- 
dually eliminated  from  the  ice,  the  water  produced  is  perfectly 
drinkable.     In  the  East  Greenland    Sea  ice-floes  frequently 
measure   more  than  twelve  nautical  miles  across— these  are 
ice-fields  properly  so  called.1    In  the  Spitzbergen  and  Novaya 
Zemlya  Seas,  they  are  much  smaller,  as  Parry  also  found. 

7.  The  thickness   which   ice   acquires  in    the  course    of  a 
winter,  when  its  formation  is  not  disturbed,  is  about  eight 
feef     In   the    Gulf  of    Boothia,    Sir  John    Ross    found    the 
greatest  thickness  about  the  end  of  May  ;  it  was  then   ten 
.feet  on  the  sea  and  eleven  feet  on  the  lakes.     In  his  winter 
harbour    in    Melville  Island,   Parry    met   with    ice   seven    or 
seven-and-a-half  feet  thick ;  and  Wrangel  gives  the  thickness 
of  a  floe  on  the  Siberian  coast,  which  had  been  formed  in  the 
course  of  a  winter,  at  nine-and-a-half  feet.     According  to  the 
observations  of  Hayes  the  ice  measured  nine  feet  two  inches 

.in  thickness  in  Port  Foulke.  He  estimates  it,  however,  by 
implication,  far  higher  in  Smith's  Sound:  "I  have  never 
seen,"  he  says,  "  an  ice-table  formed  by  direct  freezing  which 
exceeded  the  depth  of  eighteen  feet." 

8.  The  rate  at  which  ice  is  formed  decreases  as  the  thick- 
ness of  the  floe  increases,  and  it  ceases  to  be  formed  as  soon 
as  the  «floe  becomes  a  non-conductor  of  the  temperature  of 

1  Ice-fields  have  been  seen  there  equal  to  the  superficial  extent  of  a  German 
principality,  or  even  to  the  Duchy  of  Salzburg. 


4  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

the  air  by  the  increase  of  its  mass,  or  when  the  driving  of  the 
ice-tables  one  over  the  other,  or  the  enormous  and  constantly 
accumulating  covering  of  snow,  places  limits  to  the  penetra- 
tion of  the  cold. 

9.  While  therefore  the  thickness  which  ice  in  free  formation 
attains  is  comparatively  small,  fields  of  ice  from  thirty  to 
forty  feet  high  are  met  with  in  the  Arctic  Seas  ;  but  these 
are  the  result  of  the  forcing  of  ice-tables  one  over  the  other 
by  pressure,  and  are  designated  by  the  name  of  "  old   ice," 
which  differs  from  young  ice  by  its  greater  density,  and  has  a 
still  greater  affinity  with  the  ice  of  the  glacier  when  it  exhibits 
coloured  veins. 

10.  When  the  cold  is  excessive  a  sheet  of  ice  several  inches 
thick  is  formed  on  open  water  in  a  few  hours ;  this,  however, 
is  not  pure  ice,  but  contains  a  considerable  amount  of  sea-salt 
not  yet  eliminated  ;  complete  elimination  of  the  saline  matter 
takes  place  only  after  continuous  additions  of  ice  to  its  under 
surface.     A  newly-formed  sheet  of  ice  is  flexible  like  leather, 
and  as  it  becomes  harder  by  the  continued  cold,  its  saline 
contents  come  to  the  surface  in  a  white  frosty  efflorescence. 

11.  Hayes  mentions  that   he  met  with  fields  of  ice  from 
twenty  to  a  hundred  feet  thick  in  Smith's  Sound.      But  if 
it  is  difficult  in  many  cases  to  distinguish  glacier-ice,  when 
found  in  small  fragments,  from  detached  portions  of  field-ice, 
it  is  often  still  more  difficult  to  distinguish  between  old  and 
new  ice,  and  the  attempt  to  do  so  is  merely  arbitrary,  because 
their  masses  depend  not  on  their  age  alone,  but  on  other  pro- 
cesses to  which  they  are  exposed.    A  floe  of  normal  thickness 
is  never  more  than  two  or  three  years  old  ;  and  if  it  is  to 
exist  and  preserve  its  size  for  a  longer  period,  it  must  some- 
where attach  itself  to  land-ice,  so  as  to  escape  destruction 
from  mechanical  causes,  and  dissolution  from  drifting  south- 
wards.    Many  floes  run  their  course  from  freezing  to  melting 
within  a  year. 

12.  The  perpetual  unrest  in  the  Arctic   Sea,  which   con- 
tinues   undiminished    even    in   the   severest  winter,   and    the 
incessant  change  in  the  "  leads  "  and  "  ice-holes,"  are  the  main 
causes  of  the  increase  of  the  ice,  both  in  its  area  and  in  its 
vertical    depth.       Were   this    constant    movement    to    cease, 
the  result  would  be  the  formation  of  a  sheet  of  ice  of  the 


CHAP.  I.]  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN.  5 

uniform  thickness  of  about  eight  feet  over  the  whole  Polar 
region. 

13.  A  layer  of   snow,  which,  like    the    ice   itself,  is  at  a 
minimum  in  autumn,  covers  the  whole  surface  of  all  the  ice- 
fields.    This  snow,  which  in  winter  is  sometimes  as  hard  as  a 
rock,  sometimes  as  fine  as  dust,  takes,  towards  the  end  of 
summer,  more  and  more  the  character  of  the  glacier  snow  of 
our  lofty  Alpine  ranges.     Its  grains,  in  a  humid  state,  exceed 
the  size  of  beans,  and  when  in  motion  they  make  a  rustling 
noise  like  sand.     This  granular  snow  is  the  residuum  of  the 
incomplete  evaporation  of  what  fell  in  the  winter,  and  of  the 
surface  of  the  ice  which  has  become  "  rotten  "  and  porous. 
Its  crystals  are  frequently  from  a  third  to  a  sixth  of  an  inch 
in  length,  and  firm  ice  is  found  even  in  autumn  only  at  the 
depth  of  one  or  two   feet.      In   the  North  of  Spitzbergen, 
Parry  observed  that  the   surface  of  the   ice  was  frequently 
cut  up   into   ice-needles  of  more  than  a   foot  long  by  the 
drops  of  rain,  which  in  summer  fall  upon  it,  and  in  some 
places  he  found  it  overspread  with  red  snow.     We  ourselves 
never   saw   the    phenomenon    observed   by   Parry,  and   the 
ice-crystals  we  met  with  sefttem  exceeded  the  length  given 
above. 

14.  Field-ice  is  of  a  delicate  azure-blue  colour,  and  of  great 
density,  and  there  is,  in  these  respects,  no  difference  between 
that  of  the  Arctic  and  Antarctic  regions.     Cook,  indeed,  calls 
the  South  Polar  ice  colourless,  though  Sir  James  Clark  Ross 
speaks  expressly  of  the  blueness  of  its  ice-masses.  "  Sea-ice 
surpasses  the  ice  of  the  Alps  both  in  the  beauty  of  its  colour 
and  in  its  density.     The  glorious  blue  of  the  fissures  is  due 
to   the  incidence  of  light,  the  blue  rays  of  which  only  are 
reflected,  while  the  other    rays    are  absorbed.     A  spectrum 
observation   made  in    1869    on    a    Greenland  ice-field  gave 
brownish  red,  yellow,  green  and  blue.     The  yellowish  spots 
observed    in    ice    are    due   to  the  presence  of  innumerable 
microscopic  animalculae. 

15.  Sea-ice,  which,  when  the  cold  is  intense,  is  hard  and 
brittle,  loses  this  quality  with  the  increase  of  temperature  till 
it  acquires  an  incredible    toughness,   far    exceeding  that  of 
glaciers ;    and    floes    several    feet    thick   bend  under  mutual 
pressure  before  they  split.     Hence  the  fruitlessness,  especially 


6  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

in  summer,  of  all  attempts  to  loosen  the  connexion  of  its  parts 
by  blasting  with  gunpowder. 

1 6.  The  specific  gravity  of  sea-ice  is  0.91,  and  accordingly 
about  nine  parts  of  a  cubical  block   of  ice  are  under  water, 
while  one  part  only   rises  above  the  surface.      If,  however, 
the  ice  of  a  floe  be  irregularly  formed  and  full  of  bubbles, 
the  specific  gravity  will  be  correspondingly  reduced,  and  the 
volume  submerged  may  diminish  to  two-thirds  of  the  whole 
mass. 

17.  The  irregularity  of  the  forms  of  ice  is  so  great,  that  no 
deduction  can  safely  be  drawn  from  them  ;  cases  may  occur 
where  a  recently-formed  ice-floe,  which  has  been  attached  to 
old  ice,  is  forced  by  its  neighbour  to  sink  under  the  normal 
level ;  hence  the  submergence  of  floes  beneath  the  level  of  the 
sea  is  often  overstated. 

18.  The  temperature  of  the  Arctic  Sea  at  the  surface  is 
generally  below  the  freezing  point,  and  then  increases  slightly 
with  the  depth.     Sir  James  Ross  observed  that  the  tempera- 
ture in  all  oceans  does  not  alter  at  great  depths,  and  placed 
this  constant  temperature  at  39°  F.     In  summer  the  tempera- 
ture of  the  atmosphere  rises  little  above  freezing  point,  and, 
according   to    Sir  James  Ross,    it   is    still   less  at  the  South 
Pole,  because  he  saw   no  thaw-water   streaming  down  from 
the  icebergs  there   as  he  did  in  the   North.      It    was    first 
observed  in  Forster's  days,  that  is  about  a  century  ago,  that 
the  salt  was  gradually  eliminated  from  frozen  sea-water.     Of 
this  fact   Cook    knew    nothing ;    and  even    Sir  James  Ross 
endorses   Davis's  remark   that    "the  deep   sea  freezes   not." 
But  the  fact  that  ice  is   formed   on   the   open   sea,  and  far 
from  the  vicinity  of  land,  was  first'  asserted  by  Scoresby,  and 
has  been  confirmed   by  all   subsequent  observers,  though  it 
was  long  disputed. 

19.  The  crackling  sound  so  commonly  heard    along    the 
outer  edge  of  the  ice  exposed  to  the  action  of  the  waves,  is  a 
consequence  of  the  penetration  of  its  pores  by  the  sea-water, 
which  is  then  immediately  frozen,   and  disruption   follows  at 
once.     But  disruption  on  a  far  grander  scale  is  due  to  a  cause 
the  very  opposite  of  this,  the  sudden  contraction  and  splitting 
of  the  ice,   even  in  the    great    ice-fields,  which   is  produced 
usually  in  winter  by  the  sudden  fall  of  the  temperature. 


CHAP.  I.]  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN.  7 

20.  When  light  falls  on  a  field  of  pack-ice,  it  is  reflected  in 
the  stratum  of  air  above  it,  and  this  span  of  light,  called  the 
"ice-blink,"  just  above  the  horizon,  warns  the  navigator  of  the 
impossibility  of  penetrating  further.    This  phenomenon  is  often 
observed  also  over  drift-ice,  although  not  so  intense  nor  so 
yellow  in  colour  as  over  pack-ice. 

21.  Water  spaces,  on  the  other  hand,  show  their  presence 
by  dark  spots  on  the  horizon,  produced  by  the  formation  of 
clouds   from    ascending    mists.       These    are    the    so-called 
"water-sky,"    and    faithfully    indicate    the   "leads"   beneath 
them.     Above  the  larger  "  ice-holes,"  they  assume  the  dark 
colours  of  a  thunder-sky,  though  they  are  never  so  strongly 
defined. 

22.  The  annual    evaporation  from  the  surface  of  the  ice, 
which  even  in'winter  is  never  entirely  interrupted  during  the 
severest  frost,  and  the  destruction  of  ice  by  the  action  of  rain 
and  waves,  are  balanced,  to  speak  generally,  by  its  re-formation 
by  frost.     The  maximum  accumulation  of  ice  takes  place  in 
spring,  its  minimum   in  the  beginning  of  autumn.     We  ob- 
served in  the  autumn  of  1873  not  only  the  evaporation  of  the 
snow  of  the  preceding  winter,  but  also  a  vertical  decrease  of 
ice  of  about  four  feet.     Evaporation  is,  therefore,  the  most 
potent  regulator  of  the  balance  between  waste  and  growth 
in  the  accumulation  of  ice  ;    and  next  in  importance  is  the 
drifting  of  its  masses  towards  the  south  through   all  those 
openings  by  which  the  Polar  waters  mingle  with  the  waters 
of  lower  latitudes. 

23.  However  great  the  agitation  of  the  sea  may  be  in  the 
open  ocean,  and  though  it  may  dash  its  waves  with  wild  fury 
on  the  edge  of  the  ice,  within  the  icy  girdle  it  is  undisturbed, 
in  consequence  of  the  enormous  weight  of  the  superincumbent 
masses.      It  is  only  in  the  large  "  ice-holes,"  and  when  the 
winds  are  very  high,  that  the  "action  of  waves  is  discernible. 
An  isolated  accumulation  of  floes  in  a  circular  form,  suffices  to 
produce  a  calm  interior  sea,  and  its  outer  edge  only  encounters 
the  beat  of  the  ocean. 

24.  The  ceaseless  attack  to  which  the  ice  is  exposed  on  its 
outer  edge  is  the  cause  of  its  excavation  and  undermining. 
Hence  its  centre  of  gravity  is  constantly  displaced  ;  and  the 
overturning   of   its  masses   and    its   strange    transformations 


8  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

are  the  consequences  of  this  instability.  The  smaller  the 
masses  of  the  ice,  the  more  fantastic  are  the  shapes  they 
assume. 

25.  Change  of  colour  in  the  sea  as  we  enter  the  ice-region 
is  frequently,  though  not  invariably,  observed.     Almost  imme- 
diately on  entering  the  ice,  its  normal  dull  green  colour  gives 
place  to  a  deep  ultramarine  blue,  especially  in  the  East  Green- 
land seas,  and  this  colour  is  maintained  under  all  changes  of 
the  weather,  and  is  only  modified  by  local  currents.     Two 
hundred  and  fifty  years  ago  it  appeared  to  Hudson,  on  the 
coast  of  Spitzbergen,  that  the  sea,  whenever  it  was  free  from 
ice,  was   green,  and  that  its  being  covered  with  ice  and  its 
blueness  of  colour  were    intimately  connected.      Sir  James 
Ross  states  that  in  both  Polar  oceans  the  colour  of  the  sea 
changes  in  the  neighbourhood  of  ice,  and  that  the  dull  brown- 
ish  colour   sometimes   seen    near    pack-ice  in  the  Antarctic 
Ocean  is  owing  to  an  infinite  number  of  animalculae.     The 
rapid  fall  of  the  temperature  of  the  water  to  the  zero  point  is 
another  indication  that  ice  is  near. 

26.  Of  all  the  ice-formations  in  the  Arctic  Seas,  icebergs 
are  the  most  enormous.     "It  is  well  known  that  ice  is  not 
by  any  means   so  heavy  as  water,  but  readily  floats  upon  its 
surface.     Consequently  whenever  a  glacier  enters  the  sea,  the 
dense  salt  water  tends  to  buoy  it  up.     But  the  great  tenacity 
of  the  frozen  mass  enables  it  to  resist  the  pressure  for  a  time. 
By  and  by,  however,  as  the  glacier  reaches  deeper  water,  its 
cohesion  is  overcome,  and  large  fragments  are  forced  from  its 
terminal  front  and  floated  up  from  the  bed  of  the  sea  to  sail 
away  as  icebergs."1      This  process  is  sometimes  called  "  the 
calving  "  of  the  glaciers ;  and  the  direction  of  the  cleavage  is 
a  pre-indication  of  the  forms  of  the  masses  when  detached. 
The  characteristic  features  of  icebergs  are  their  simple  outline, 
differing  widely  from  the  fantastic  shapes  which  the  fragments 
of  sea-ice  tend  to  assume  ;  their  great  height  as  compared  with 
their  breadth — their  greenish-blue  colour — their  distinct  stra- 
tification— their  slight  transparency — and   the  roughly-granu- 
lated character  of  their  ice.     Icebergs  with  long,  sharp-pointed 
peaks,  like  those  exhibited  in  numerous  illustrations,  have  no 

1  Geikie's  Great  Ice  Age,  pp.  38,  39. 


CHAP.  I.]  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN.  9 

real  existence.  It  is  only  fragments  of  field-ice,  raised  up  by 
pressure,  exposed  to  the  action  of  waves  and  the  process  of 
evaporation  which  are  transformed  into  fantastic  shapes.  Ice- 
bergs are  generally  of  a  pyramidal  or  tabular  shape,  and  in 
time  they  are  usually  rounded  off  into  irregular  cones.  They 
vary  in  height  from  20  to  300  feet.  Sir  John  Ross  (1818)  men- 
tions an  iceberg  of  51  feet ;  Baffin  (1615)  of  240  feet ;  Parry 
(1819)  of  258  feet;  Kane  (1853)  of  300  feet;  and  Hayes 
(1861)  one  315  feet  high,  the  depth  of  which  below  the  water- 
line  he  estimated  at  half  a  mile.  On  the  coast  of  East  Green- 
land, Scoresby  once  counted  500  icebergs,  some  of  which 
reached  the  height,  of  200  feet ;  and  during  the  second  German 
North-Pole  expedition,  we  saw  many  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Kaiser  Franz- Josef  fiord  which  measured  220  feet  in  height. 
In  Austria  Sound,  and  on  the  east  coast  of  Kron-Prinz 
Rudolph's  land,  their  altitude  varied  from  80  to  200  feet. 
From  the  covering  of  mist  which  envelops  them,  icebergs 
generally  appear  much  higher  than  they  really  are,  and  their 
depth  below  the  surface  is  not  so  considerable  as  is  generally 
supposed.  In  an  iceberg  200  feet  above  the  water,  a  total 
height  of  600  to  800  feet  may,  as  a  mean,  be  inferred.  It  is 
only  glaciers  of  a  very  great  size  which  shed  icebergs  ;  smaller 
glaciers,  like  those  of  Novaya  Zemlya,  only  strew  the  sea  with 
a  multitude  of  fragments  which  resemble  broken  sea-ice. 
Hence  the  appearance  of  icebergs  is  connected  with  the  prox- 
imity to  glacier-covered  lands,  and  with  the  currents  which 
prevail  along  their  coasts.  Baffin's  Bay,  Smith's  Sound,  East 
Greenland,  the  South-East  of  Greenland,  Austria  Sound,  are 
the  principal  places  where  they  collect  together  and  lie  like 
fleets  before  the  entrances  of  bays  and  gulfs.  Under-currents 
of  the  sea  take  them  not  unfrequently  in  directions  contrary 
to  the  drift  of  the  field-ice,  which  depends  only  on  upper- 
currents  ;  and  abnormal  winds  may  sometimes  carry  them  out 
to  seas  where  they  have  been  seldom  or  never  seen.1  This 
appears  to  be  the  case  even  with  those  met  with  on  the  north- 
west coast  of  Novaya  Zemlya.  On  the  other  hand,  they  have 
never  been  seen  on  the  coasts  of  Siberia,  which  have  no 
glaciers. 

1  In  the  North  Atlantic  Ocean  down  to  40°  N.  L. 
3 


io  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

27.  The  constant  displacement  of  the  centre  of  gravity 
of  an  iceberg,  resulting  from  the  imsymmetrical  decrease 
of  its  form,  causes  its  periodical  oversetting  ;  and  the 
different  temperature  of  the  internal  and  external  ice  is  the 
principal  cause  of  its  rending  asunder  with  a  noise  like 
thunder;  a  process  which  occurs  generally  in  the  height  of 
summer. 


CHAPTER  II. 

NAVIGATION   IN   THE  FROZEN  OCEAN. 

I.  ALTHOUGH  it  be  impossible  to  give  any  one,  who  has  not 
with  his  own  eyes  seen  the  Arctic  Sea,  a  perfectly  clear 
conception  of  its  character,  the  phenomena  described  in  the 
preceding  chapter  are  sufficient  to  indicate  the  difficulties 
and  dangers  to  which  its  navigation  is  necessarily  exposed. 
And  to  these  difficulties  and  dangers,  formidable  enough  in 
themselves,  are  often  added  the  evil  influences  of  preconceived 
theories  and  exaggerated  expectations,  usually  followed  by 
bitter  disillusions.  The  calm  judgment,  which,  to  all  the  bold 
plans  of  navigation  within  the  Polar  basin,  opposes  distrust  in 
their  feasibility,  while  it  points  to  the  hundred  expeditions 
which  have  at  last  returned  home  after  penetrating  but  a 
little  way  into  the  frozen  sea,  is  an  attainment  of  slow  growth. 
Years,  too,  must  be  devoted  to  the  theoretical  study  of  the 
Polar  question,  to  the  examination  of  all  that  predecessors 
have  experienced  and  recorded.  But  this  study  is  very 
important  to  Polar  navigators ;  for  the  discoveries  which  they 
too  readily  regard  as  exclusively  their  own  prove  sometimes 
to  have  been  made  centuries  before  them. 

2.  A  most  essential  element  of  success  is  the  choice  of  a 
favourable  ice  year;   and  the  commander  of  an  expedition 
must  possess  sufficient  self-control  to  return,  as  soon  as  he 
becomes  convinced  of  the  existence  of  conditions  unfavourable 
for  navigation.     It  is  better  to  repeat  the  same  attempt  on  a 
second  or  even  a  third  summer,  than  with  conscious  impotence 
to  fight  against  the  supremacy  of  the  ice. 

3.  Polar  navigators  have  learnt*  in  the  school  of  experience 
to'distinguish  between  navigation  in  the  frozen  seas  remote 


12  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

from  the  land,  and  navigation  in  the  so  called  coast-waters. 
The  former  is  far  more  dangerous,  entirely  dependent  on 
accident,  exposed  to  grave  catastrophes,  and  without  any 
definite  goal.  It  affords  no  certainty  of  finding  a  winter 
harbour  for  the  long  period  when  cold  and  darkness  render 
navigation  impossible.  On  the  other  hand,  a  strip  of  open 
water,  which  retreats  before  the  growth  of  the  land-ice  only 
in  winter,  forms  itself  along  coasts,  and  especially  under  the 
lee  of  those  exposed  to  marine  currents  running  parallel  to 
them ;  and  this  coast-water  does  not  arise  from  the  thawing 
of  the  ice  through  the  greater  heat  of  the  land,  but  from  the 
land  being  an  immovable  barrier  against  wind,  and  therefore 
against  ice-currents.  The  inconstancy  of  the  wind,  however, 
may  baffle  all  the  calculations  of  navigation  ;  for  coast-water, 
open  as  far  as  the  eye  can  reach,  may  be  filled  with  ice  in  a 
short  time  by  a  change  of  the  wind.  Land-ice  often  remains 
on  the  coasts  even  during  summer,  and  in  this  case  there  is 
nothing  to  be  done  but  to  find  the  open  navigable  water 
between  the  extreme  edge  of  the  fast-ice  and  the  drift-ice. 
Should  the  drift  become  pack-ice,  the  moment  must  be  awaited 
when  winds  setting  in  from  the  land  carry  off  the  masses  of 
ice  blocking  the  navigation,  and  open  a  passage  free  from  ice, 
or  at  least  only  partially  covered  with  drift-ice.  It  is  evident 
that  navigation  in  coast- waters  must  be  slow  and  gradual, 
though  it  has  always  been  attended  with  the  greatest  ad- 
vantages. Barentz  was  the  first  who  tested  its  value  ;  but  it 
was  Parry,  the  most  distinguished  of  all  Polar  navigators,  who 
discovered  its  full  importance,  and  from  his  day  it  has  been 
accepted  as  an  incontrovertible  canon  of  ice-rtavigation.  On 
this  point  he  himself  says :  "  Our  experience,  I  think,  has 
clearly  shown,  that  the  navigation  of  the  Polar  Seas  can  never 
be  performed  with  any  degree  of  certainty  without  a  con- 
tinuity of  land.  It  was  only  by  watching  the  openings 
between  the  ice  and  the  shore  that  our  late  progress  to  the 
westward  -was  effected  ;  and  had  the  land  continued  in  the 
desired  direction,  there  carr  be  no  question  that  we  should 
have  continued  to  advance,  however  slowly,  towards  the 
completion  of  our  enterprise."1 

1  Parry's  Journal  of  a  Voyage  for  the  Discovery  of  a  North-  West  Passage,  1819-20, 
p.  298.     4to.     London,  1821. 


CHAP.  IL]    NAVIGATION  IN  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN.  13 

4.  The  successes  of  the  English  in  the  North  American 
Archipelago  were  the  result  of  this  mode  of  navigation.     Its 
principle  is  to  search  for  and  sail  along  the  network  of  narrow 
channels  when  the  main  passage  is  blocked  by  pack-ice,  and 
to  turn  to  account  the  narrowest  opening  between  the  ice  and 
the  land.     In  the  Siberian  coast  expeditions  also  this  method 
of  constantly  following  the  coast-waters  has  been  successfully 
observed.     Where  coast-water  does  not  exist,  or  only  to  a 
limited  extent,  as  on  the  East  Coast  of  Greenland,  this  method 
is  of  course  impracticable.     The  fate  of  the  second  German 
North    Pole   expedition    is   an   illustration    of   this ;    it  was 
ordered   to  penetrate  in  this   direction,   and   its  failure  was 
inevitable.     On  the  other  hand,  all  the  unsuccessful  attempts 
of  expeditions  to  penetrate   northward  from    Spitzbergen — 
expeditions  whose  course  and  termination  resemble  each  other 
as  one  egg  resembles  another — may  be  reckoned  among  those 
in    seas  remote   from   land.     To  the    same  category  belong 
the  expeditions   for   the   discovery  of  a  north-east  passage, 
and  simply  because  of  the  great  extent  of  frozen  sea  between 
Novaya  Zemlya  and  Cape  Tcheljuskin. 

5.  In  the  frozen  sea  remote  from  the  land,  from  200  to  300, 
or  at  the  most  400,  nautical  miles  must,  according  to  all  past 
experience,  be  regarded  as  the  greatest  distance  which  a  vessel 
is  able  to   compass,  under  the  most   favourable  conditions, 
during  the   few  weeks    of  summer  in  which  navigation   is 
possible.      The  fact  that  Sir  James  Ross  at  the  South  Pole, 
and  Norwegian  fishermen  in  the  Sea  of  Kara,  accomplished 
still  greater  distances,  only  proves  that  they  were  little  or  not 
at  all  impeded  by  ice.     Ross  observed  that  the  ice-floes  of 
the    Southern  Arctic   Seas    are  smaller  than    those   of   the 
Northern  :  "  The  cause  of  this  is  explained  by  the  circum- 
stance of  the  ice  of  the  southern  regions  being  so  much  more 
exposed    to    violent    agitations    of    the   ocean,  whereas    the 
northern  sea  is  one  of  comparative  tranquillity."  *     The  rarer 
occurrence  of  land  at  the  South  Pole  permits  freer  scope  to 
the  currents  of  the  sea,  diminishes  the  opportunity  for  the 
growth  of  ice  on  the  coasts,  tends  to  widen  the  passages  in 
the  network  of  water-ways,  and  thus  facilitates  navigation. 
Even  the  swell  of  the  sea  within  the  ice  is  observed  in  the 

1  Sir  J.  C.  Ross's  Southern  Antarctic  Voyage,  vol.  ii.,  p.  151. 


14  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

South  Polar  Ocean,  while  it  is  never  seen  in  the  North. 
Besides  the  greater  hindrances  peculiar  to  the  whole  North 
Polar  Sea,  there  is  the  specially  unfavourable  circumstance, 
in  the  case  of  the  North- East  passage,  that  the  shallowness  of 
the  Siberian  Sea  prevents  a  close  navigation  of  its  coasts. 

6.  The  choice  of  the  mbst  appropriate  season  is  another 
important  consideration  in  ice-navigation  ;  for  this  period  does 
not  fall  at  the  same  time  in  all  seas,  and  the  disregard  of 
season  was  a  common  cause  of  the  failures  of  the  expeditions 
of  earlier  centuries.     Since  the  frozen  sea  remains  unbroken 
and  almost  unaffected  by  the  action  of  the  sun  even  in  June, 
and  at  that  time  extends  far  to  the  south,  it  is  evident  that  all 
attempts  to  force  a  passage  in  that  month  are  labour  thrown 
away.     The  ice-barrier  retreating  northward,  or  the  transfor- 
mation of  pack  into  drift-ice,  leaves  free  navigable  water  four 
or  five  weeks  later.     The  month  of  August  is  the  best  time 
for  ice-navigation  in  Baffin's  Bay ;  the  end  of  July  or  begin- 
ning of  August  on  the  East  Greenland  coasts ;  the  second 
half   of  August   and    the   beginning    of   September   in   the 
Spitzbergen  waters  ;  and  in  the  region  of  the  Parry  Islands 
the    favourable    opportunity    ends   about   the    beginning   of 
September.      In  general,  it  seems  that  the  time  most  pro- 
pitious  for   all    the  coast-water   routes,  begins  some  weeks 
earlier   than   the   corresponding   period   in    the   frozen   seas 
remote  from  land.      But  since,  even  in  the   first  weeks   of 
September,  the  most  promising  conditions  are  often  succeeded 
by  a  sudden  reaction  due  to  storms,  to  cold  setting  in  rapidly, 
or  to  excessive  falls  of  snow,  navigation  in  the  land-remote 
frozen  seas,  in  itself  so  extremely  hazardous,  becomes  specially 
critical,  just  when  the  ice-sheet  at  its  minimum  appears  to 
promise  the  greatest  results. 

7.  The  help  of  steam  power  is  an  indispensable  requisite, 
as  by  it  a  vessel  is  able  to  defy  the  capricious  changes  of  the 
wind.     The  movements  of  a  ship  amid  the  ice  are  made  in 
interminable  curves,  and  the  power  to  describe  an  arc  with  the 
least  radius  enables  a  vessel  to  follow  up  narrow  and  often 
blocked  water-ways.     As  it  is  incessantly  exposed  to  severe 
shocks  from  the  ice,  a  paddle-wheel  steamer  is  useless ;  and 
even  in  screw-steamers  care  must  be  taken  to  protect  the  pro- 
peller by  a  special  construction. 


CHAP.  IT.]     NAVIGATION  IN  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN.  15 

8.  The  rate  of  speed  of  a  vessel  in  the  ice  must  necessarily 
be  moderate.     From  three  to  six  miles  an  hour  are  sufficient : 
and  a  rate  of  eight  or  ten  miles  would  soon  render  her  not 
seaworthy.     But  even  with  this  reduced  rate,  her  whole  frame- 
work is  shaken  and  loosened  at  last  by  the  incessant  shocks 
she  sustains ;  and  this  condition  of  the  ship  becomes  apparent 
when  concussion  with  the  ice  is  followed  not  by  a  noise  as  of 
thunder,  but  by  a  low,  dull,  groaning  sound.     The  larger  a 
vessel,  the  less  her  capacity  to  withstand  these  shocks,  and 
the  sooner  will  these  signs  of  her  diminished  strength  betray 
themselves. 

9.  An  Arctic  ship  should  be  built  with  sharp  rather  than 
with  full  lines,  so  that  when  pressed  by  the  ice,  she  may  more 
easily  escape  being  nipped  and  crushed.     A  ship  built  with 
what  is  called — in  England — full  lines,  a  full,  round  ship,  is 
not  easily  raised  but  is  liable  to  be  crushed  by  ice-pressure. 
The  Hansa  was  built  in  this  manner,  and  was  crushed  by  the 
first  squeeze  from  the  ice ;  the  Germania  and  the   Tegetthoff 
were  both  of  them  sharp-built  ships,  and  stood  the  test  of 
the  ice  excellently   well.     To  protect  it   from  the  effects  of 
grinding  on  ragged  "  ice-tongues,"  the  hull  is  generally  iron- 
plated  for  some  feet  under  water,  and  the  bows  are  strength- 
ened as  much  as  possible,  because  this  part   of  the  ship   is 
exposed  to  the  greatest  shocks. 

10.  The  tactics  of  a  ship  in  the  ice  are  guided  entirely  by 
the  character  of  the  hindrances  to  be  overcome.     If  the  ice- 
fields be  large  and  heavy,  they  are  then  generally  separated 
by  broader  water-ways  and  "  leads,"   and  a  ship  may  often 
amid  such  ice  follow  her  course  for  hours  with  few  deviations 
subject  always  to  the  danger  of  being  "  beset "  and  crushed. 
When  the  passage  is  blocked  by  a  barrier  of  ice,  the  situation 
becomes  grave  and  serious  ;  for  such  fields  are  not  to  be  dis- 
placed by  any  force  which  the  ship  may  exert,  and  nothing  is 
left  to  the  navigator  but  to  await  their  parting  asunder  in  a 
position  as  sheltered  as  possible.     When  the  ice  is  loose  and 
the  floes  comparatively  small,  the  impeding  barriers  may  be 
charged  by  the  ship.     She  may  then  force  asunder  some  of 
these  floes  or  separate  them  by  the  continuous  pressure  of 
steam-power.     In  cases  of  this  kind,  large  vessels  have  the 
advantage,  and  can  bring  to  bear  a  greater  amount  of  pressure, 


16  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

whereas  smaller  ones  stick  fast  and  remain  immovable.  These 
accumulations  of  ice,  while  they  make  a  "  besetment "  more 
likely,  diminish  the  danger  of  pressure. 

11.  Hence  it  is  clear  that  small  are  to  be  preferred  to  large 
vessels  for  ice-navigation,  except  under  circumstances  of  rare 
occurrence ;  first,  because  they  are  more  readily  handled,  and 
next,  because  of  their    greater  power  of  resistance  and  of 
their  being  more  easily  raised  under  pressure  from  the  ice. 
Their  one  disadvantage  of  lesser  momentum  is  of  compara- 
tively slight  consequence.     The  experience  of  all  the   North 
Pole  expeditions  of  this  century  shows,  that  ships  of  150,   or 
at  the  most  of  300  tons,  are  best  suited  for  all  purposes. 

12.  Iron   ships   have   often   been   employed,   but  with   no 
success ;  they  are  far  less  able  to  bear  pressure  than  wooden 
ships,  as  was  proved,  among  other  things,  by  the  fate  of  the 
River  Tdy  in   1868,  in  Baffin's  Bay,  and  of  the  Sophia,  a 
Swedish  ship  of  discovery  in  the  north  of  Spitzbergen. 

13.  It  admits  of  no  question,  that  two  vessels  should  be 
employed  in  preference  to  one,  and  this  should  be  accepted  as 
a  first  principle  whenever  the  means  at  our  disposal  admit  of 
it.     Both  ships  should 'also  be  provided  with  steam-power,  for 
otherwise  their  separation   is  almost    inevitable, — a  danger, 
however,  for  which,  under  all  circumstances,  they  must  be 
prepared. 

14.  All  that  is  commonly  understood  about  piercing  the  ice 
by  sawing  and  boring  through  it  is  a  delusion,  and  arises  from 
the  misunderstanding  of  technical  expressions.     Where  there 
is  navigable  water,  there  any  one  can  sail — where  there  is  none, 
no  one.     In  1869  and    1870,  after  coming  on  a  cul-de-sac  of 
ice  in  Greenland  to  the  east  of  Shannon  Island,  we  could  not 
penetrate  a  yard  further  ;  in  1871,  in  loose,  but  solid  ice,  we 
drew  away  only  by  warping  on  the  smaller  floes,  without  being 
able  to  make  the  slightest  progress,  and  in  1872  we  were  twice 
"  beset,"  in  heavy  ice,  in  spite  of  our  steam  power.     The  pene- 
tration of  close  pack-ice  is  an  impossibility :    in   this   case 
patient  endurance  is  alone  of  any  avail,  and  hence  Sir  John 
Ross  so  emphatically  recommends  the  Polar  navigator  "  never 
to  lose  sight  of  the  two  words  caution  and  patience."1     If  a 

1  Sir  John  Ross — Second  Voyage  of  Discovery  to  the  Arctic  Ocean ,  p.  i8o<     4to. 
London,  1835. 


CHAP.  II.]     NAVIGATION  IN  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN.  17 

vessel,  therefore,  is  arrested  by  impenetrable  masses  barring  its 
way,  the  breaking  up  of  the  ice  must  be  patiently  awaited, 
and  this,  generally,  is  effected  by  calms,  although  the  ebb  and 
flow  of  the  tide  appear  to  have  an  influence  on  the  solidity  of 
the  ice.  It  is  then  usual  with  sailing  ships  to  seek  the  larger 
"  ice-holes,"  or  keep  in  the  freest  water-ways,  in  order  to  guard 
against  the  danger  of  being  completely  inclosed.  These 
precautions,  however,  are  not  so  requisite  for  steam-vessels, 
as  their  power  to  escape  quickly  and  in  any  direction  secures 
them  against  this  danger.  A  steam-vessel  may  even  venture 
to  fasten  on  to  an  ice-floe  by  means  of  an  ice-anchor,  and  of 
course  under  its  lee,  the  fires  being  banked  up,  so  that  by 
getting  up  steam  she  may  shift  her  place  as  soon  as  the  ice 
moves  nearer.  As  a  principle,  and  so  far  as  it  is  possible  with- 
out the  exhaustion  of  her  powers,  a  ship  in  the  ice  should 
endeavour  to  be  in  constant  motion,  even  though  this  entail 
many  changes  of  her  course  and  the  temporary  return  to  a 
position  which  had  been  abandoned.  The  making  fast  to  a 
floe,  however,  should  never  be  attempted,  except  when  every 
hope  of  navigating  in  the  surrounding  waters  has  been  proved 
fruitless.  The  fastening  a  vessel  to  an  iceberg  diminishes, 
indeed,  its  drifting,  but  is,  if  possible,  to  be  avoided,  because 
of  the  danger  of  the  iceberg  overturning  or  rending  asunder, 
things  which  occur  far  more  frequently  than  we  should  be  led 
to  expect  from  their  great  appearance  of  stability.  When  a 
ship,  notwithstanding  every  possible  caution,  is  "  beset,"  it  is 
then  advisable  to  "  ship  "  the  rudder  in  order  to  protect  it  from 
injury,  to  which  it  is  peculiarly  liable  from  its  unusual  weight 
and  size.  A  ship  is  exposed  to  considerable  danger  when  she 
finds  herself  among  icebergs  in  a  calm  ;  but  since  these  are 
over-spread  by  a  dazzling  sheen,  even  in  the  thickest  mist, 
the  peril  of  the  position  is  to  be  avoided  at  the  last  moment 
by  warping. 

15.  As  the  happy  choice  of  a  sea-way  is  one  of  the  essential 
conditions  of  success  in  ice-navigation,  the  ability  to  determine 
the  ship's  position  and  to  ascertain  whether  a  surface  covered 
with  ice  to  the  horizon,  admits  of  being  penetrated,  is  most 
desirable.  Hence  the  employment  of  a  balloon  would  be  of 
the  last  importance  in  Arctic  navigation.  The  advantage  of 
being  able  to  ascend  from  the  ship  in  a  balloon  secured  by  a 


i8  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

rope,  to  the  height  of  a  few  hundred  feet,  is  self-evident ;  and, 
undoubtedly,  the  first  vessel  which  avails  herself  of  this  great 
resource  will  derive  extraordinary  benefit  from  it. 

1 6.  From  the  deck  of  a  ship  even  drift-ice  appears  to  be  of 
such  solidity  at  a  little  distance  as  to  defy  navigation,  while 
from  the  mast-head  more  water  than  ice  may  be  descried. 
In  order  then  to  extend  the  horizon,  a  look-out,  called  "  the 
crow's  nest,"  is  fixed  on  the  mast-head,  in  which  an  officer  is 
always  on^the  watch,  and  from  which  all  the  operations   of 
the  vessel  are  directed.     In  .a  ship  of  the  size  and  height  of 
the   Tegetthoffi   the  horizon  visible  from    "the    crow's  nest" 
extends  to  about  eleven  miles,1  but  at  the  distance  of  even 
five  miles  the  possibility  of  penetrating  cannot  be  determined 
with  sufficient  exactness.     It  is  the  business  of  the  officer  in 
"  the  crow's  nest"  to  observe  the  passages  through  the  ice  and 
distant  objects  generally,  as  he  is  in  the  best  position  to  fulfil 
this  most  important  duty.     It  is  the  special  business  of  the 
watch  on  the  forecastle  to  mark  what  lies  in  the  immediate 
neighbourhood  of  the  vessel,  and  his  constant  care  is  demanded 
to  avoid  isolated  ice-floes  and  prevent    collision  with   them. 
The  seaman   at   the  helm  steers  the  ship  by  the  signs  and 
calls  which  come  to  him  from  "  the  crow's  nest,"  and  modifies 
them  according  to  those  of  the  watch  on  the  forecastle.     The 
rest  of  the  crew  remove  the  smaller  fragments  of  ice  from 
the  vessel's  course,  special  care  being  taken  to  prevent  their 
damaging  the  screw. 

17.  While  sea-currents  move  the  ice  in  close  and  continuous 
lines,  winds  produce  great    disturbances  in  their  movement, 
and  open  long  "  leads  "  in  the  direction  of  their  course,  which 
often  alternate  with  strips  of  the  thickest   pack-ice.       This 
movement  of  the  ice  varies  with  each  accumulation  of  floes, 
as  its  rate  of  motion  depends  on  the  height  of  the  ice-field, 
which    then  acts  as  a  sail.     It  is  ascertained  by  experience 
that  calms,  on  the  other  hand,  have  the  remarkable  property 
of  breaking  up  the  ice.     The  knowledge  and  application  of 
these  circumstances  are  essential  to  the  Arctic  navigator.     If 
the  course  of  a  ship  lies  across  or  against  a  current,  it  is   con- 
stantly deflected.     The  deflection  on  the  coast  of  East  Green- 

1  The  nautical  mile  or  "  knot,"  which  is  about  an  ordinary  mile  and  a  sixth,  is 
meant. 


CHAP.  II.]    NAVIGATION  IN  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN.  19 

land,  for  example,  amounted  to  five,  even  ten  miles,  within 
twenty-four  hours ;  hence  the  importance  of  choosing  routes 
with  and  not  against  the  course  of  currents. 

1 8.  Lastly,  it  is  of  the  greatest  moment  to  choose  betimes 
an  appropriate  winter  harbour,  and  it  is  therefore  necessary  to 
keep  near  the  coast  towards  the  close  of  the  season  for  navi- 
gation. To  find  one  suitable  for  shelter  during  the  winter  in 
an  unknown  Arctic  region  is  a  matter  of  great  difficulty,  for 
it  very  often  happens,  that  the  ice  drifts  out  from  these 
"  docks  "*  in  the  storms  which  constantly  occur,  or  perhaps  the 
"  dock  "  is  so  sheltered,  that  the  ice,  if  it  breaks  up  at  all, 
breaks  up  only  in  the  following  summer.  Shallow  bays  which 
freeze  almost  to  the  bottom,  lying  under  the  lee  of  a  current 
or  within  a  fiord,  are  the  most  appropriate  spots  in  which  to 
winter. 

1  Dock,  an  opening  in  the  ice,  artificial  or  natural,  offering  protection.     Kane's 
Glossary  of  Arctic  Terms,  vol.  i.,  p.  13. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  PENETRATION  OF  THE  REGIONS  WITHIN  THE  POLAR 
CIRCLE  ;  THE  PERIOD  OF  THE  NORTH-WEST  AND 
NORTH-EAST  PASSAGES. 

I.  AROUND  the  lonely  apex  of  the  Pole  stand  cairns  of 
stone  which  serve  to  mark  the  points  to  which  the  restless 
spirit  of  human  enterprise  and  discovery  has  penetrated.  In 
its  zenith  wheels  the  sea-gull  in  its  flight,  and  the  harpoon- 
persecuted  seal  finds  on  its  ice-floes  an  unapproachable 
asylum ;  but  the  Pole  itself  remains  the  goal  which  no 
human  effort  has  yet  reached. 

2.  As  all  knowledge  is  perfected  slowly  and  gradually,  so 
man's  knowledge  of  the  earth  and  its  configuration  forms  no 
exception  to  this  general  rule.     Of  the  few  attempts  of  early 
antiquity  to  enlarge  the  domain  of  geographical  knowledge, 
tradition  tells  us  only  of  the  Argonautic  expedition  of  the 
Greeks,  of  the  voyage  of  the  Phoenicians  to  Ophir,  and  their 
bolder  circumnavigation  of  Africa.     With  the  conception  of 
the  spherical  form  of   the  earth  the   still  vague   notion   of 
climatal  zones  makes  its  appearance,  and  to  this,  four  cen- 
turies  before  Christ,    Pytheas   of   Marseilles   gave   the   first 
scientific  elucidation  and  the  first  approximation  to  modern 
theories  by  his  doctrine  of  the  Polar  Circle.     Almost  contem- 
poraneously  Alexander's  expedition  to  the  wonder-land  of 
India   created  a  paradise  for  commerce  and  navigation,  to 
secure  which  a  shortened  route,  the  route  through  the  ice — the 
most  perverse  notion  that  ever  entered  into  the  mind  of  man 
to  conceive — was  one  thousand  eight  hundred  years  afterwards 
eagerly  and  passionately  sought. 

3.  Rome  had  extended  her  knowledge  to  Scandinavia,  and 
Seneca's    prophetical    mind   foresaw   the   discovery   of    new 


CH.  in.]      NORTH-WEST  AND  NORTH-EAST  PASSAGES.        21 

worlds.  But  the  deluge  of  religious  strifes,  the  migrations  of 
nations  in  the  earlier  part  of  the  Middle  Ages,  the  holy  zeal 
for  destruction  in  the  apostles  to  the  heathen,  proved  formid- 
able barriers  to  the  extension  of  geographical  knowledge, 
which  were  broken  through  only  by  the  piratical  hordes  of 
Normans  so  renowned  in  story.  While  the  Romans  boasted 
that  Britain  had  never  been  circumnavigated,  the  Normans, 
throwing  the  deeds  of  the  Phoenicians  into  the  shade,  dis- 
covered Greenland,  and  became  the  first  Polar  Navigators. 

4.  Travels  by  land  were  the  principal  means  by  which  the 
geographical   knowledge   of    the   world   was    enriched ;    but 
during  the  Middle   Ages   the   information   which   travellers 
communicated,  uncertain   and    superficial    even   for  Europe, 
served  only  to  supply  food  for  the  fancies  of  map-makers,  as 
far  as  the  distant  parts  of  the  world  were  concerned. 

5.  But  the  grand  moment  at  length  arrived  in  the  history  of 
mankind  when  the  civilization  of  the  West,  looking  beyond 
the  narrow  horizon  of  the  Old  World,  and  awaking  from  the 
geographical  dreams  of  centuries,  burst  the  fetters  of  tradition, 
and  within  three  hundred  years  perfected  the  knowledge  of 
our  planet  up  to  the  Pole. 

6.  When  by  his  famous  line  of  partition,  Pope  Alexander 
VI.  granted  to  Spain  and  Portugal  the  new  countries  dis- 
covered in  the  East  and  West,  the  brigantines  of  these  nations 
spread  themselves  over  all  seas  in  search  of  new  lands  and 
fresh  glory.     To  the  other  maritime  nations,  to  the  English 
and  the  Dutch,  nothing  remained,  if  they  meant  to  acquire 
gold-yielding  lands,  but  to  drive  the  Spaniards  and  Portuguese 
from  their  conquests,  or  to  seek  new  Eldorados — yea,  by  the 
discovery  of  sea  routes  on  the  north  of  Asia  and  America,  to 
aspire  to  India  itself.     This  was  the  conception  first  enter- 
tained by  both  the  English  and  the  Dutch,  and  Geography  at 
any  rate  profited  by  their  delusions.     These    nations  were 
not  to  blame  if  those  routes,  known  afterwards  as  the  North- 
West  and  North-East  passages,  degenerated  into  chimeras,  if 

passages  had  to  be  sought  in  higher  and  still  higher  latitudes, 
—ultimately  in  the  ice  itself,  although  the  Dutch  geographer, 
Plancius,  struck  out  the  consoling  theory  of  the  open  Polar 
Sea. 

7.  But  who  in   those    days   could    presuppose    that    the 


22  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES  [INTRO. 

continents  of  Asia  and  America,  just  where  those  passages 
were  attempted,  symmetrically  developed  the  most  enormous 
longitudinal  dimensions  ?  Even  the  actual  discovery  of  the 
vast  extent  of  Siberia  exerted  but  little  influence  on  the 
question  of  the  North-East  passage,  for  the  achievements  of 
individuals  were  not  then  so  quickly  disseminated  as  at 
present.  A  succession  of  men  in  vessels  poorly  equipped 
now  struggled  against  the  supremacy  of  the  ice,  avoiding  at 
first  the  dreaded  wintering,  while  they  attempted  sometimes 
the  North-East,  sometimes  the  North- West,  sometimes  the 
passage  over  the  Pole  itself.  In  these  attempts  many  lost 
their  lives;  many  returned,  despairing  of  but  still  hoping 
for  the  solution  of  the  problems — but  no  one  reached  the  goal. 

8.  The  amazing  simplicity  of  the  first  adventurers  is  seen 
in  Frobisher's  project  to  erect  forts,  duly  provided  with  can- 
nons and  men,  on  the  commanding  points  of  the  passage,  in 
the  letters  of  recommendation  given  by  kings  of  England  to 
the  leaders  of  the  expedition  for  the  small  Saracenic  states 
which  were  supposed  to  exist  beyond  the  river   Obi ;  but 
these  old  navigators  carried  no  letter  of  recommendation  to 
the  great  potentate — the  ice.     Gold,  too,  they  hoped  to  find 
in  the  North,  because  the  book  of  Job  speaks  of  gold  coming 
from  thence,  and  the  North-East  passage  was  considered  as 
free  from  danger,  because  Pliny  mentions  some   Indians  who 
had  been  driven  towards  Norway  ! 

9.  When  another  century  and  a  half  had  clasped,  a  series 
of  unsuccessful  attempts  to  force  the  North-East  passage  put 
a  decisive  check  to  material  interests  in  Polar  expeditions. 
The  North-East  passage  belonged  henceforward  to  the  history 
of   the  past.     The  English  and  Dutch  withdrew   from    the 
Novaya  Zemlya  seas ;  and  after  Wood's  retreat  no  scientific 
expedition  entered  those  seas  for  two  hundred  years,  until  the 
days  of  the  A  ustrian  Expeditions. 

10.  Among  the  maritime  nations  of  Europe,  it  was  England, 
and  especially  her  merchants,  who  had  hitherto  largely  in- 
vested in  the  costs  and  risks  of  these  Argonautic  expeditions 
"  for  the  glory  of  God  and  the  good  of  the  country."     The 
Dutch  soon  contented  themselves,  after  Barentz's  death,  with 
the  capture  of  whales  in  the  Arctic  seas ;  France  remained 
an   unconcerned   spectator,  while   the  sylphs    of    Versailles 


CH.  in.]      NORTH-WEST  AND  NORTH-EAST  PASSAGES.        23 

consumed  the  whalebone  of  whole  fleets  of  whalers  ;  and  Spain 
and  Portugal  early  withdrew  from  seas  in  which,  instead  of 
ingots  of  gold,  ice-floes  only  were  to  be  found.  But  even  for 
England  the  days  of  the  prophets  had  now  passed  away — 
the  days  of  a  Cabot,  a  Mercator,1  a  Wolstenholme,  and  a 
Walsingham.  Men  of  weight  raised  their  voices  against  the 
chimeras  of  Arctic  commercial  routes,  and  Chillingworth  con- 
temptuously compared  an  expedition  for  the  discovery  of  the 
North-East  passage  to  the  study  of  the  Fathers. 

11.  It  may  be  asked  why  nations  struggled  with  daunt- 
less ambition  for  the  lost  cause   of  the  barren   North- West 
and  North-East  passages,  while  for  a  century  they  stretched 
forth  timid  hands  after  the  rich  treasures  of  lands  lying  in 
the  more  favoured  zones  ?     The  mighty  stimulus  of  the  love  of 
the  marvellous  explains   this  series  of  efforts  taken*  up  by 
generation   after  generation.      Frobisher,  Davis,  Baffin,   and 
the  Novaya  Zemlya  adventurers,  told  on  their  return  of  gold- 
lands  far  within  the  domains  of  the  icy  Hydra.     Their  tales  of 
single  combats  with  spear  or  matchlock  against  polar  bears,  of 
the  dreadful  snow-storms  and  fearful  cold  of  the  Arctic  winter, 
were  heard  with  grim  delight  by  listeners  on  whom  no  hard- 
ships were  imposed..     Or  they  spoke  of  a  darkness  that  con- 
tinued  for  months,  of   the  flaming   arches  of   the  northern 
lights,  of  the  sun  remaining  visible  for  many  weeks  in  the 
heavens,  of  a  race  of  dwarfs,  of  unheard-of  animals,   of  fish 
as  big  as  ships  of  war,  of  monsters  with  long  teeth  which 
precisely  resembled  the  Sphinxes  of  the  plains  of  the  Pyra- 
mids,  of   white   and   blue   foxes,   of   floating   mountains   of 
dazzling  crystal,  of  ships  seen  upside  down  in  the  air — when 
had  ever  the  mind  of  man  more  food  to  nourish  the  love  of 
the  marvellous  or  greater  incentives  to  stimulate  the  love  of 
distinction  ?     But  besides  these  appeals  to  the  imagination, 
every  generation  desires  new  confirmations  of  its  convictions  ; 
and  hence  geographical  questions,  after"  being  shelved  for  a 
time,  come  again  to  trie-front  as  by  an  inward  necessity. 

12.  If   the  earlier  Polar  expeditions   pursued   exclusively 
material    ends,   a  decided   change   appears   in   those   of  the 
present  century — the  Polar  world  itself  became  an  object   of 
scientific  investigation.     With  Sir  John  Ross  (1818)  began  a 

1  Mercator  was  not  an  Englishman  ;  he  was  a  Dutchman,  born  1512,  died  1594. 


24  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

series  of  expeditions,  at  first  subservient  to  the  idea  of  a 
North-West  passage,  but  which  ultimately  derived  all  their 
importance  from  their  attempt — ineffectual  as  it  proved — to 
rescue  the  lives  of  139  men,  who  had  fallen  far  from  the  fields 
and  scenes  where  earthly  fame  is  commonly  achieved.  It 
was  these  expeditions,  still  fresh  in  the  memory  of  this  gene- 
ration, which,  summoning  to  their  aid  the  modern  power  of 
steam  against  the  ice,  succeeded  in  drawing  on  our  Arctic 
maps  a  circle  whose  mean  distance  was  200  (German)  miles 
from  the  Pole.  Parry  on  the  frozen  sea  of  Spitzbergen  had 
approached  it  within  100  miles  (German)  ;  Kane,  Hayes  and 
Hall  on  the  coast  of  the  Kennedy  Channel,  the  former  to 
within  1 1 6,  and  the  two  latter  to  within  108  miles,  and  the 
Austro- Hungarian  expedition  to  within  109  miles 

13.  M'Clintock,  who  returned  with  the  relics  of  the 
Franklin  expedition,  succeeded  in  perfecting  a  mode  of 
discovery  independent  of  the  ship — that  by  means  of  sledg- 
ing— admirably  adapted  for  future  Arctic  expeditions.  But 
the  North- West  passage  for  which  six  generations  had  toiled, 
though  discovered,  was  shown  to  be  utterly  worthless  for  all 
material  purposes — a  dreary  web  of  coast  lines. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  INNER   POLAR  SEA. 

I.  THE  Arctic  Sea,  in  some  of  its  features,  forcibly  impresses 
us  with  its  resemblance  to  the  glaciers  of  the  Alps.  In  both 
cases,  the  ice  presses  from  a  region,  colder  and  less  favoured 
by  climate,  towards  one  warmer  and  more  favoured^  In  the 
Alpine  glaciers,  the  movement  is  from  above  downwards; 
in  the  Frozen  Ocean,  the  movement  is  from  a  higher  to  a 
lower  geographical  latitude.  In  both  cases,  the  tongues  and 
spurs  of  the  masses  of  ice  formed  by  the  configuration  of  the 
land  or  by  currents  of  the  sea,  terminate,  whenever  they  reach 
an  isothermal  curve  of  altitude  or  latitude,  the  mean  tem- 
perature, of  which  suffices  to  dissolve  them  or  prevent  their 
formation.  Moraines  also  have  their  equivalent  in  the  Arctic 
Sea ;  for  it  is  an  established  fact  that  icebergs  and  ice-fields 
laden  with  the  debris  and  rubbish  of  Arctic  lands,  deposit 
these  burdens  round  the  outer  edge  of  the  Frozen  Ocean, 
and  to  this  process,  partially  at  least,  the  origin  of  the  New- 
foundland Banks  is  ascribed.  If  this  comparison  between  the 
phenomena  of  high  latitudes  and  great  altitudes  be  just,  then 
we  should  have  as  much  reason  to  believe  in  the  existence  of 
the  so-called  open  Polar  Sea,  as  we  should  have  to  maintain, 
that  in  our  glacier  ranges  ice  ceases  to  be  formed  above  a 
certain  altitude. 

2.  The  belief  of  past  times1  in  such  a  sea  shows  how 
unsatisfactory  is  the  simple  to  man's  mind,  and  how  old  is 
his  tendency  to  clothe  the  remote  and  the  uncommon  with 

1  Three  centuries  ago,  Plancius,  the  Dutch  geographer,  devised  this  for  the 
North  Pole,  while  Barros,  the  Portuguese  historiographer,  did  the  same  for  the 
South  Pole. 

4 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 


a  garment  of  the  marvellous.  What  was  the  open  Polar  Sea 
but  the  "Ilarz  Sea"  of  the  North,  or  the  legendary  zone 
of  the  ever-sunny  Eden  of  the  Hyperboreans,  far  beyond 
the  land,,  of  the  Anthropophagi  over  which  was  spread  an 
atmosphere  veiled  in  s^w,  and  through  which  no  light  could 
penetrate !  Who  has  ever  seen  this  open  Polar  Sea  ?  Do 
the  accounts  of  navigators  confirm  its  existence  ?  Nay — 
their  accounts  are  rather  a  series  of  counter-statements- 
Hudson,  Baffin,  Phipps,  T^chitschagoff,  Buchan,  Franklin, 
Parry,  Collinson,  Scoresby,  M'Clintock,  Koldewey,  Torell, 
Nordenskjolcl,  have  all  expressed  their  disbelief  in  its  exist- 
ence. If  some  have  pretended  that  they  have  seen  it,  how 
strange  it  is  that  they  never  sailed  on  it !  It  has  recently 
been  attempted  to  make  the  great  champion  of  the  Polar 
question^  Dr.  Petermann,  a  supporter  of  this  conception  ;  but 
in  the  "  Mittheilungen"  of  this  highly  meritorious  geographer, 
there  aft  many  passages  which  most  emphatically  protest 
against r  it.  His  views  extend  only  to  an  inner  Polar  Sea 
navigable  under  certain  circumstances,  and  every  one  ac- 
quaintecl  with  those  regions  may  adopt  his  point  of  view, 
though  he  refuses  to  admit  the  existence  of  the  open 
Polar  Sea. 

3.  In  those  centuries  when  the  Natural  Sciences  were 
little  cultivated,  when  the  theories  of  the  Trade  Winds,  of 
Equatorial  and  Polar  sea-currents,  were  still  unknown,  and 
when  as  yet  the  processes  in  the  Frozen  Ocean  had  not 
been  submitted  to  scientific  investigation,  we  cannot  be  sur- 
prised at  the  preconceptions  which  were  formed  concerning 
its  phenomena.  In  those  times  all  beyond  Norway  was  a 
chaos  of  ice-filled  darkness  ;  the  necessity  of  a  scientific 
investigation  of  those  wastes  was  not  felt ;  and  down  to  the 
time  of  Sir  John  Ross,  Polar  navigators  on  their  return  home 
brought  with  them  no  kind  of  scientific  knowledge  of  Nature 
in  the  Arctic  regions.  To  reach  India  was  the  main  if 
not  the  only  end  they  had  in  view.  The  instructions  which 
Willoughby,  the  first  Polar  navigator,  received,  give  u^  an 
insight  into  the  delusions  of  earlier  times.  These,  for  example, 
warned  adventurers  against  men-eaters  who  swam  naked  in  the 
sea,  and  in  the  rivers.  It  was  the  period  of  fables  long  since 
forgotten.  Maldonado,  de  Fuca,  Bernarda,  Yelmer,  Andrejew, 


CHAP.  IV.]  THE  INNER  POLAR  SEA.  ^        27 

Martiniere,  and  the  whale-fishers,  brought  home  tales  of  pas- 
sages to  India  discovered,  of  new  continents,  of  the  ascertained 
connexion  of  Novaya  Zemlya  with  the  northernmost  point  of 
Siberia  (Yelmerland)  or  even  with  Greenland.  Two  centuries 
ago  the  failure  of  all  attempts  at  a  North-East  passage  was 
attributed  to  Russia's  commercial  policy,  inasmuch  as  it  had 
been  proved  to  the  satisfaction  of  all,  that  the  heat  was 
greater  in  the  north,  that  the  seas  there  ceased  to  freeze,  and 
that  the  country  was  covered  with  a  luxuriant  green  ! 

4.  There  was,  indeed,  a  certain  logical  consequence  in  the 
belief  of  an  inner  Polar  Sea,  as  long  as  it  was  unknown  that 
ice  is  formed  on  the  open  sea  as  well  as  on  the  coasts.  There 
was  also  one  argument,  which  made  the  existence  of  such  a 
sea  not  altogether  improbable.  It  might  be  assumed,  that 
the  formation  of  ice  renewed  every  year  in  the  Arctic 
regions,  would  necessarily  produce  eternal  bulwarKf!  of  con- 
gelation and  destroy  all  organic  life,  unless  selfcurrents 
modified  these  extremes  of  climate.  The  ice  which^pformed 
round  the  Pole — it  was  argued — is  not  of  an  unlimited  but 
of  a  definite  quantity.  Since,  then,  this  quantity  of  ice  must 
be  brought  with  tolerable  uniformity  from  the  innermost  Polar 
region  to  lower  latitudes  by  the  action  of  sea-currents,  there 
are  at  least  one  or  two  months  of  the  summer  when  the  ice 
is  at  a  minimum,  when  no  new  formation  takes  place,  and 
when  a  sea  relatively  ice-free  may  appear  in  the  place  of  the 
sea  which  had  been  covered  with  ice.  This  sea  would  be  the 
more  open  and  navigable,  just  in  proportion  as  less  land 
might  be  found  at  the  Pole.  But  in  this  assumption  it  is 
implied,  that  the  ice  moves  with  perfect  regularity  and  in 
radial  lines  from  a  given  point  without  any  disturbance  from 
winds,  or  counter-currents,  or  land,  consequently  with  a  quiet 
simplicity  of  hydrography,  for  which  Nature,  neither  there 
nor  elsewhere,  shows  any  predilection.  Dove  makes  the 
mean  annual  temperature  of  the  North  Pole,  2-5°  F. ;  but 
it  is  probably  still  less.  What,  then,  is  the  probability  of  an 
open*  Polar  Sea,  if  this  annual  mean  only  be  considered  ?  All 
the  accounts  too  of  animal  life  increasing  in  exuberance  as  we 
advance  northwards — from  which  a  more  favourable  climate 
within  the  innermost  Polar  region  and  an  open  Polar  Sea 
have  been  inferred — must  be  received  with  caution,  for  the 


28  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

appearance  of  numerous  flocks  of  birds  proves  only  that  the 
remain  where  open  water  prevails  for  a  time  and  that  the 
change  their  abode  with  its  change  of  place. 

5.  In  more  recent  times  great  influence  has  been  attributed 
to  the  Gulf  Stream  as  a  power  influencing  all  the  seas,  known 
and  unknown,  of  the  whole  Arctic  region.     Dr.  Petermann, 
however,  in  a  lately  published  work,  endeavours  to  show  that 
its  effects  are  discernible  only  on  the  northern  seas  of  Spitz- 
bergen  and  Novaya  Zemlya.    Its  action  on  the  coasts  of  Spitz- 
bergen  has  been  indisputably  established  by  the  Swedes,  who 
discovered  there  certain  tropical  plants  (Entada  gigalobiuni)  ; 
but  the  penetration  of  the  warmer  waters  of  this  current  to 
the  northern  coasts  of  Novaya  Zemlya  has  not  been  so  posi- 
tively ascertained.     In  the  Austrian  Expedition  of  1873-4,  we 
discovered  no  proofs  "of  its  existence.    We  found  neither  the 
constant  current,  nor  the  water  of  a  higher  temperature,  which 
characterizes  that  renowned  stream. 

6.  For  a  long  time  the  "  ice-holes,"  seen  by  Wrangel  and 
Morton,  were  regarded  as  indications  of  an  ice-free  Polar  Sea. 
With  regard  to  those  seen  by  Morton  in  81°  22',  Richardson 
very  justly  remarks  :  "  The  open  water  of  the  Kennedy  Channel 
is  not  of  greater  extent  in  the  month  of  June  than  the  open 
spaces  which  have  occasionally  been  seen  in  summer  on  the 
north  of  Spitzbergen  by  whale-fishers."     Wrangel,  when  he 
describes  the  "  Polynjii,"  which  he  saw  on  the  east  of  the  New 
Siberian  Islands,  accounts  for  them  by  the  action  of  a  local 
coast-wind  ;  and  yet  Wrangel  would  have  been  the  first  to 
favour  the  notion  of  an  inner  Polar  Sea,  for  he  still  thought, 
in  opposition  to  Scoresby,  that  ice  could  not  be  formed  on  the 
open  sea,  because  of  the  absence  of  land  as  a  support  for  the 
ice  in  its  formation. 

7.  The  first  practical  application  of  the  theory  of  an  open 
Polar  Sea  was  long  ago  devised  by  Plancius  ;•  the  discovery, 
namely,   of  a   route   in   high    latitudes   to    China.     But   the 
expeditions  to  the  North   Pole,  properly  so  termed,  sprang 
also   from   this   theory,   which   was   held   with    the   greatest 
pertinacity.     The  evidence  of  unsuccessful  undertakings  was 
always  met  and  outweighed  by  the  counter-experience  of  one 
favourable  year  in  the  ice.     Thus  Barentz,  in  the  exceedingly 
propitious  summer  of  1594,   advanced  without  difficulty  one 


CHAP,  iv.]  THE  INNER  POLAR  SEA.  29 

degree  of  latitude  beyond  the  northern  extremity  of  Novaya 
Zemlya,  while  his  successors  frequently  encountered  insur- 
mountable difficulties  at  Cape  Nassau,  and  he  himself  in  the 
following  year,  1595,  found  the  state  of  the  ice  changed  much 
for  the  worse.  In  the  years  1871,  1874,  Mack,  Carlsen,  and 
the  two  Austro-Hungarian  expeditions  came  upon  an  open 
sea  in  the  very  places  where  very  few,  if  any,  water-ways  were 
to  be  seen  in  1872  and  1873.  In  the  summers  of  1816,  1817, 
the  mighty  stream  of  ice  on  the  coast  of  East  Greenland  had 
decreased  to  such  an  extent  that  Scoresby  met  with  little 
ice  between  74°  and  80°  N.L.,  but  since  then  whalers  have 
constantly  seen  the  heaviest  ice  there,  heavier  than  anywhere 
else.  In  1753  and  1754,  the  Sea  of  Kara  and  the  Novaya 
Zemlya  Sea  were  free  from  ice.  But  in  subsequent  years  the 
whale-fishers  knocked  in  vain  at  their  ice-barred  entrances. 
In  1823  Liitke  from  a  point  on  the  west  coast  of  the  Sea 
of  Kara  saw  that  sea  without  ice  ;  but,  in  the  middle  of 
August,  1833,  Pachtussow  found  the  western  side  of  that  sea 
open,  while  in  the  previous  year  he  himself  could  not  pass  the 
Karian  Gates.  Again  in  1743  and  1773,  the  North  Spitz- 
bergen  Sea  held  out  promises  the  most  inviting,  which  might 
possibly  have  permitted  the  reaching  of  a  still  higher  degree 
of  latitude  than  that  which  Nordenskjold  and  Koldewey 
attained  in  1868.  Sir  John  Ross,  in  the  first  year  of  his 
second  voyage,  found  all  things  most  favourable  for  navi- 
gation ;  but  in  the  following  year  the  very  reverse ;  and 
Sir  James  C.  Ross  experienced  the  same  alternation  of  cir- 
cumstances in  the  Southern  Polar  Sea.  In  1850,  Penny 
found  the  Wellington  Channel  free  from  ice,  but  in  1852, 
Belcher,  although  he  penetrated  far  further  than  Penny, 
was  confronted  in  the  same  channel  by  pack-  and  drift-ice. 
Scoresby  the  younger,  to  whose  profound  faculty  of  obser- 
vation we  owe  the  most  significant  hints  on  the  nature  of 
the  Polar  Sea,  although  he  had  navigated  the  Greenland 
ice-ocean  for  twenty  years,  landed  only  once  on  its  coast. 
The  Swedish  expedition  (1861)  could  approach  the  north- 
east of  Spitzbergen  only  in  boats  ;  Smith  sailed  over  the 
sea  there  (1871)  as  far  as  Cape  Smith.  The  walrus-hunter, 
Matilas,  sailed  round  (1864)  the  north-east  island  completely, 
and  Carlsen,  an  ice  navigator,  as  successful  as  he  was  skilful,  in 


30  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

1 863  circumnavigated  Spitzbergen,  and  in  1871  Novaya  Zemlya, 
and 'discovered  there  the  relics  of  Barentz's  winter  quarters.  In 
1872,  King  Karl  Land  was  circumnavigated,  although  both 
Koldewey  and  Nordenskjold  (1868)  as  well  as  the  first  Aus- 
trian expedition  (1871)  had  in  vain  attempted  to  approach  it. 
How  greatly  also,  in  the  same  year,  the  state  of  the  ice  varies 
in  different  places,  is  proved  by  the  fact,  that  Franklin  learnt 
from  the  whalers  that  they  never  saw  the  ice  so  thick  and  so 
strong  in  Davis  Straits  as  at  the  end  of  July  1819,  while 
Parry,  more  to  the  north  by  some  degrees  of  latitude,  pursued 
his  path  of  discovery  even  to  Melville  Island,  and  in  the  fol- 
lowing year  returned  to  England  without  meeting  any  special 
obstacles.  These  examples,  to  which  many  more  might  be 
added,  show  how  variable  are  the  chances  of  ice-navigation 
from  one  year  to  another.  But  however  variable  the  con- 
ditions of  the  ice  may  be,  the  impediments,  even  under  the 
most  favourable  circumstances,  are  so  very  great,  that  we 
have  never  been  able  to  penetrate  the  innermost  Polar 
regions, — penetrate,  that  is,  to  where,  according  to  the  views 
of  an  earlier  time,  the  open  Polar  Sea  should  be  found. 

8.  Those  propitious  ice-years  amount  therefore  to  nothing 
more   than   a   greater   recession   of    the    outer    ice-barrier — 
trifling  when    compared  with   the   mighty  whole — or   to   an 
increased  navigability  of    certain  coast-waters,  or  to  a  local 
loosening  of  the  inner  Polar  ice-net     In  reality  the   whole 
Arctic  Sea,  with  its  countless  ice-fields  and  floes,  and  its  web 
of  fine  interlacing  water-ways,  is  nothing  but  a  net  constantly 
in  motion  from  local,  terrestrial,  or  cosmical  causes.     All  the 
changes  and  phenomena  of  this  mighty  network  lead  us  to 
infer  the  existence  of  frozen  seas  up  to  the  Pole  itself ;  and 
according  to  my  own  experience,  gained  in  three  expeditions, 
I  consider  that  the  states  of  the  ice  between  82°  and  90°  N.L. 
will  not  essentially  differ  from  those  which  have  been  observed 
south  of  latitude  82° ;  /  incline  rather  to  the  belief  that  they  will 
be  found  worse  instead  of  better. 

9.  If  this  view  be   correct,   it  will   remain  -an  insuperable 
difficulty   to    reach   the   Pole  with  a  ship.     The  penetrating 
to  82°  or  83°  exhausts,  according  to  all  past  experience,  the 
disposable  time  for  navigation,  and  presupposes  moreover  the 
most  favourable  conditions   for  the   attaining  of  such   high 


CHAP,  iv.]  THE  INNER  POLAR  SEA.  31 


latitudes.  A  ship  which  reaches  82°  N.L.  by  the  beginning 
of  autumn  must  risk  nothing  more,  should  only  navigate 
really  open  water,  and  the  expediency  of  securing  a  winter 
harbour  should  then  outweigh  every  other  consideration. 

10.  He  who  expects  with  a  ship  of  the  present  construction 
to  reach  the  Pole  in  a  single  summer,  necessarily  believes  in 
an  ocean  at  the  Pole.  But  even  If  an  expedition  should 
penetrate  to  84°  in  Smith's  Sound,  or  should  reach  Cape 
Tcheljuskin  on  the  north-east  route,  it  would  not  follow  that 
such  an  ocean  exists,  but  only  that  the  Polar  Sea  presents  at 
different  times  and  in  different  places  open  water-ways,  which 
may  enable  a  ship  to  advance  beyond  a  point  hitherto  reached ; 
but  it  is  improbable  that  the  circumstances  which  favoured 
this  will  be  repeated  the  next  summer,  so  as  to  permit  the 
ships  to  penetrate  still  further — or  to  return.  The  last 
American,  expedition  returned  without  being  able  to  speak 
decisively  as  to  the  possibility  of  navigating  Lincoln  Sea,  and 
since  this  has  not  yet  been  verified  by  fact,  we  must  suspend 
our  judgment  on  the  matter.  To  the  English  expedition, 
which  has  taken  this  route  to  the  Pole,  is  reserved  the  great 
work  of  throwing  light  on  the  region  of  Upper  Smith's 
Sound,  and  the  whole  civilized  world  will  hail  with  joy  any 
successes  which  a  nation,  so  long  conspicuous  for  its  persever- 
ance in  the  cause  of  discovery,  may  happily  achieve. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  FUTURE   OF  THE  POLAR  QUESTION. 

I.  THE  eagerness  of  human  nature  for  gain  and  material 
prosperity  is  so  great,  that  we  are  wont  to  estimate  the  value 
of  all  undertakings  by  the  standard  of  utility ;  and  too  often 
it  is  forgotten,  that  each  generation  is  destined  to  fulfil  the 
task  of  acquiring  and  collecting  the  knowledge  which  is  to 
benefit  only  a  later  generation.  If,  then,  the  Polar  question 
be  valueless  for  our  material  interests,  is  it  therefore  valueless 
for  science  ?  and  assuming  that  it  is  for  the  present  worthless 
as  far  as  gain  and  wealth  are  concerned,  must  it  continue 
so  for  all  time  ?  Not  that  we  are  entitled,  even  from  this 
narrower  point  of  view,  to  deny  the  usefulness  of  Polar 
exploration,  as  Cook  seems  to  have  done  when  he  said,  "  Never 
from  those  regions  will  any  advantage  accrue  to  our  race  ; " 
but  rather  bear  in  mind  what  Sir  James  Ross  tells  us  :  "  The 
profit  which  accrued  to  England,  in  each  year  after  the  voyage 
(i 8 1 8)  of  my  uncle  (Sir  John  Ross)  in  North  Baffin's  Bay,  from 
those  rediscovered  parts  of  the  Arctic  seas,  was  more  than 
enough  to  defray  all  the  expenses  of  the  voyages  of  discovery 
undertaken  from  1818  to  1838."  Scoresby  with  his  single  ship 
made  a  million  thalers  by  the  capture  of  whales,  and  the 
Americans  had  for  many  years  a  clear  profit  of  eight  million, 
dollars  from  the  fisheries  of  the  frozen  seas  of  Behring's 
Straits.  There  were  also,  it  is  true,  very  considerable  losses  ; 
for,  in  1830,  nineteen  English  ships  engaged  in  the  whale 
fishery  were  "  beset "  in  the  ice  of  Melville  Bay,  and  nearly 
all  destroyed;  in  1871,  twenty-six  American  ships  were 
crushed  to  pieces  in  Behring's  Straits,  and  as  many  as  seventy- 


CHAP,  v.]   THE  FUTURE  OF  THE  POLAR  QUESTION.  33 

three  Dutch  vessels  sank   in    one   year   in   the  seventeenth 
century  from  the  pressure  of  the  ice. 

2.  We  do  not,  however,  mean  to  assert,  that  the  progress  of 
Polar  discovery  is  always  followed  by  a  corresponding  increase 
in  the  capture  of  fish  in  the  Arctic  seas.     On  the  contrary, 
the  take  of  oil-yielding  animals  is  steadily  decreasing,  and 
even  if  an  open  sea  should  be   discovered   in    82°   N.L.,    in 
which  whales  should  be  found  in  as  great  abundance  as  ice- 
floes unhappily  are,  the  whaler  with  his  poor  equipment  would 
never  be  able  to  follow  them  thither.      The    fur    countries, 
once  as  productive  as  the  mines  of  Peru,  are  incapable  of 
further  extension  ;    even   the  treasures  of  mammoths'   tusks 
have  become  rare,  and  in  order  to  bring  thirty  tons  of  lignite 
from  the  north-east  of  Greenland,  a  ship  must  expend  seventy 
tons  of  sound  coal  in  the  transit,  besides  passing  the  winter 
there.     That  the  teas  of  China,  the  silks  of  Japan,  the  spices 
of  the  Moluccas  will  never  descend  to  us  from  the  ice-fields 
has  long  been  settled.     No  one  at  the  present  day  thinks  any 
longer  of  the  commercial  value  of  the  North -West  and  North- 
East  passages.     Modes  of  escape  from  the  perils  and  caprices 
of  the  ice  have  grown'  out  of  the  endeavour  to  discover  routes 
of  commerce,  which  lay  beyond  the  reach  of  the  cannon  of 
the  Spaniards  at  the  time  when  they  aspired  to  the  monopoly 
of   the  trade  of  the  world.     The  reward  of  25,000  gulden, 
offered   by   the    Dutch  government  for  the  discovery  of    a 
North-East   passage,    and  that  of   £20,000  by  the   English 
parliament  for  the  North-West  passage,  have  never  been  paid, 
because  never  claimed,  nor  are  they,  in  the  least  degree,  likely 
to  be  claimed.1 

3.  Yet,  quite  independent  of  material  results,  Polar  explo- 
ration presents  no  unworthy  object  for  scientific  investigation 
—a  region  of  the  globe  120,000  square  miles  in  extent  never 
yet  entered  by  man.     The   Polar  question,  as  a  problem  of 
science,  aims  at  determining  the  limits  of  land  and  water,  at 
the  perfecting  of  that  network  of  lines  with  which  compara- 
tive science  seeks  to  surround  our  planet,  even  to  its   Poles. 
The  completion  of  this  labour  will  serve  to  discover  those 
physical  laws  which   regulate  climates,  the  currents  of  the 

1  As  a   corrective  to  this   rather  extreme   statement,  see  Clement  Markham's 
Threshold  of  the  Unknown  Region,  4th  Edition,  pp.  383—393. 


34  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

atmosphere  and  sea,  and  the  analogies  of  geology  with  the 
earth  as  we  see  it. 

4.  But  how  is  this  to  be  attained  ?     At  first  it  would  appear 
as  if  the  methods  of  ice-navigation  had  been  followed  by 
such  success,  that  their  continued  application  guaranteed  still 
greater   results.      The  gradual  advance  by  means  of   ships, 
from  the  Polar  Circle  to  73°,  75°,  79°,  or  even  to  82°  N.L.,  has 
been  the  result  and  is  the  reward  of  the  labours  of  three 
centuries.     But  to   reach   higher   degrees,    from  82°  to   90°, 
depends  on  other  conditions  than  mere  time.     That  increased 
experience  and  boldness  have  removed  many  of  the  incon- 
veniences   and   dangers   attendant   on   Arctic   navigation   is 
undoubtedly  true,  but  it  is  also  as  true,  that,  upon  the  whole, 
tJie  safety  and  convenience  of  ice-navigation  have  more  steadily 
increased  than  its  successes.     Hudson,  Baffin,  and   especially 
Scoresby,  and  even  some  whalers  of  the  seventeenth  century, 
reached  latitudes  which  have  scarcely  been  exceeded  since, 
and  in  many  cases  this  progress  was  due,  not  to  greater  bold- 
ness and  experience,  but  rather  to  chance  and  the  caprices  of 
the  ice,  which  "  to  the  whaler  often  permitted  glances  into  its 
interior,  which  were  denied  to  the  scientific  explorer." 

5.  The  greater  perfection  of  our  means  enables  us  to  con- 
duct   Polar   expeditions   with   greater    facility.      Instead    of 
dissipating  our  strength  by  sending  out  several  ships,  even 
small  fleets,  amounting  sometimes  to  fifteen  ships  (often  not 
larger  than  the  boats  of  a  modern  Polar  ship),  since  the  days 
of  Sir  John  Ross,  we  equip  one  or  two  ships  only,  strongly 
built  for  their  special  purpose,  provided  with  steam-power, 
and  with  all  that  is  desirable  or  requisite  ;  and  instead  of 
despatching  them  for  short  summer  cruises,  we  provision  them, 
send  them  out  for  several  years,  and,  by  appropriate  nourish- 
ment and  the  aid  of  medical  science,  protect  the  crews  from 
the  scourge  of  scurvy.     In  those  days,  when  even  the  wealthy 
lived  during  the  winter  on  salt  beef,  and  English  squires  were 
obliged  at  the  beginning  of  winter,  on  account  of  the  scarcity 
of  food  for  the  cattle,  to  kill  and  salt  a  portion  of  their  herd, 
preserved  and  antiscorbutic  victuals  were  an  impossibility  to 
a  Hudson,  a  James,  a  Fox,  in  their  winters  amid  the  ice.     Those 
introduced  by  Ross — then    called    "  Donkin's    meat  " — have 
been  greatly  improved  since,  and  through  them  the  scurvy, 


CHAP,  v.]   THE  FUTURE  OF  THE  POLAR  QUESTION.  35 

which  used  to  carry  off  whole  crews  of  ships,  has  lost  its 
former  terrors. 

6.  In  this  power  to  extend  our  expeditions  without  danger, 
and    especially   in  sledge  journeys  during   the  autumn  and 
spring,  which  are  possible   only  to  expeditions  prepared  to 
winter  in  the  ice,  are  the  grounds  why  we  have  not  halted  at 
the  barriers    "  of  the  bulwarks   built  for  eternity  ; "    in   the 
Rennselaer  harbour,  in  the  Lancaster-Barrow  route,  or  at  the 
Pendulum  islands.     It  is  only  sledge  expeditions,  as  Midden- 
dorf   says,  which  have    been  able   to   effect    results  of  any 
magnitude  on  the  inaccessible  coasts  of  the  extreme  north  ; 
and  the  great  extent  to  which  the  Russians  had  used  sledge 
expeditions   evidently   served   as   an   example   both   to   the 
English  and  to  Kane. 

7.  In  Polar  expeditions,  therefore,  we  have  probably  reached, 
so  far  as  the  exploration  of  the  highest  latitudes  by  means  of 
ships  is  concerned,  the  limits  of  possibility.     The  extraordi- 
nary success  which  fell  to  the  lot  of  Hall's  expedition  teaches 
zis  only  the  possibility  of  encroaching  but  a  little  beyond  that 
limit,  even  under  the  most  favourable  circumstances. 

8.  In  all  cases  where  the  attempt  shall  be  made  to  reach 
the  highest  latitudes  with  a  ship,  I  would  again  recommend 
the  route  through  Smith's  Sound,  because,  in  the  first  place,  I 
believe  that  any  considerable  advance  is  only  to  be  expected 
in  coast-water ;  and  in  the  second  place,  because  the  Grant 
Coast  offers  facilities  for  sledge  expeditions  on  a  large  scale. 
East   Greenland   in   the  higher  latitudes,    73° — 75°,  may  be 
regarded  as  inaccessible  ;  and  the  attempt  to  penetrate  north- 
wards in  its  coast-water  was  a  delusion  of  the  second  German 
North-Pole  expedition.      In  the  north  of  Spitzbergen,  and  in 
Behring's  Straits,  fifty  expeditions  and  countless  whalers  have 

-heard  from  the  ice  an  imperious  ne plus  ultra  ;  and  the  same 
prohibition  has  been  uttered  to  as  many  expeditions  on  the 
North-East  passage.  In  both  these  routes  the  cause  of  failure 
was  the  disproportion  between  what  could  be  reached  in  one 
or  two  summers,  and  the  vast  extent  of  sea  blocked  by  im- 
penetrable ice.  In  like  manner,  the  probability  of  reaching 
the  Pole  itself  with  our  present  resources  is  so  small,  and  the 
attempt  to  do  it  is  so  utterly  disproportionate  to  the  sacrifices 
exacted  and  the  results  achieved,  that  it  would  be  advisable 


36  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

to  exclude  it  from  Arctic  exploration,  until,  instead  of  the 
impotent  vessels  of  the  sea,  we  can  send  thither  those  of 
the  air. 

9.  Be  this  as  it  may,  the  present  English  North-Pole  Expe- 
dition will  essentially  contribute  to  solve  the  question,  whether 
the  Pole  can  be  reached  by  the  route  through  Upper  Smith's 
Sound.      This,  according  to  the  views  of   almost  all   Polar 
navigators,  holds  out  the  greatest  chances  for  further  advance 
by  sea.     Should  this  expedition,  equipped  in  so  effective  a 
manner,  and  sent  out  by  a  nation  of  such  great  experience, 
not   come  nearer  to   the   goal,   or,   if  nearer,   only   through 
sledging — which  may  very  probably  be  the  case — the  convic- 
tion will  then  be  strengthened,  that  all  efforts  to  reach  the 
Pole  by  navigation  in  the  Frozen   Ocean   are  hopeless,  and 
witness  only  to  the  glorious  persistency  of  human  endeavour. 

10.  But    until    aerial    navigation    to    the    Pole    shall    be 
attempted,  it  would  be  advisable  to  follow  the  example  of 
the  Swedes,  and,  in  the  service  of  Natural  History  and   Geo- 
graphy, content  ourselves  with  the  exploration  of  those  Arctic 
lands  of  which,  up  to  the  present  moment,  we  know  only  the 
coast-line,  or  which,  situated  on  the  outermost  verge  of  our 
Polar  charts,  are  still  untrodden  by  man ;  we  mean  specially 
Gillis7,  Grinnell's,  Wrangel's  Land,  and  above  all,  the  interior 
of  Greenland.     The  Polar  question,  hitherto  regarded  chiefly 
as   a  geographical  problem,  would  thus,  for  a  considerable 
time,  be  taken  up  in  the  interest  of  Natural  Science.     Lieu- 
tenant Weyprecht,  after  dwelling   on  the    predominance  of 
exploration  in  Polar  expeditions,  expresses  a  wish,  that  the 
great  civilized  nations  would  unite  in  contemporaneous  Arctic 
expeditions    for   magnetical,    electrical,    and    meteorological 
investigations  :  "  In  order  to  attain  decisive  scientific  results, 
a  number  of  expeditions  should  be  sent  to  different  places  in 
the  Arctic  regions  to  make  observations,  at  the  same  time, 
with   similar   instruments,   and    in   accordance    with   similar 
instructions."     They  who  think  such  results  too  insignificant 
for  the  energies  and  sacrifices  which  are  expended  to  achieve 
them,  and  who  would  rather  that  such  efforts  should  be  trans- 
ferred to  those  still  unknown  regions  of  the  earth,  which  may 
become  the  dwelling-places  of  man,  will,  of  course,  give  their 
veto  against  the  further  agitation  of  the  Arctic  question. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

POLAR  EQUIPMENTS. 

I.  EVERY  Arctic  expedition  should  be  guided  by  the  experi- 
ence of  its  predecessors,  both  in  its  plan  and  its  equipment ;  and 
hence  we  have  often  to  deplore  the  negligence  of  almost  all 
Polar  navigators  in  failing  to  inform  those  who  follow  them  of 
what  they  actually  saw,  of  their  modes  of  procedure,  or  of 
the  mistakes  which  they  committed.  It  will  not,  therefore, 
be  labour  thrown  away,  if  we  state  our  own  experience  and 
record  our  own  observations  for  the  guidance  of  others,  in 
order  to  show,  with  the  utmost  possible  clearness,  what 
future  explorers  have  before  them,  and  how  best  to  meet  it. 

2.  Undivided  command  in  an  expedition  is  the  first  of  all 
rules ;  but  if  there  be  any  division  of  command  in  a  subordi- 
nate expedition  by  sea  or  land,  the  duties  and  rights  of  its 
commander  must  be  clearly  and  exactly  denned.  In  recent 
times  the  command  of  a  Polar  expedition  has  sometimes 
been  conferred  not  on  a  seaman,  but  on  a  man  of  science,  as 
in  the  cases  of  Kane,  Hayes,  Nordenskjb'ld,  and  Torell. 
Where  the  investigation  of  questions  connected  with  Natural. 
History  is  the  aim  and  object,  this  precedent  is  admissible, 
but  it  should  never  be  observed  where  the  commander  has 
an  important  part  to  fulfil  as  a  navigator.  The  command  of 
an  expedition  has  never  been  conferred  on  a  man  of  science 
by  the  English  government.  In  the  very  commencement, 
indeed,  of  Polar  discovery,  an  English  expedition  was  placed 
under  the  command  of  Sir  Hugh  Willoughby,  who  was  not 
bred  a  sailor,  but  down  to  the  seventeenth  century,  even  in 
their  naval  campaigns,  such  men  were  appointed  to  naval 
commands.  The  Dutch  expeditions  of  the  sixteenth  century 


38  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

generally  adopted  a  destructive  division  of  command,  under 
supercargoes  and  pilots,  representing  the  mercantile  and 
nautical  elements  :  confusion  and  discord  were  the  inevitable 
consequences. 

3.  Next  to  the  selection  of  a  commander,  the  selection  of 
the  crew  demands  the  greatest  care.     This  ought  to  be  made 
some  time  before  the  expedition  starts,  in  order  that  those 
unfit   for  the  service  may   be   discovered,   and    their   places 
supplied  by  others  ;  this  cautious  mode  of  procedure,  and  not 
a  preference   for  any  particular  nationality,  will  secure  the 
most  effective  crew.     Although  seamanlike   qualities  do  not 
belong  in  the  same  degree  to  every  nation,   time  and  pains 
only  are  needed  to  secure  a  picked  crew  for  a  North-Pole 
expedition  from  almost  any  nation.     Endurance  of  cold  is  not 
the  only  test  of  effectiveness,  although  this  is  a  very  common 
assumption  ;  but  a  sense  of  duty,  perseverance,  and  resolution 
are  the  virtues  of  a  seaman.      Habit  soon  teaches  men  to 
conquer  cold,  and  inexorable  necessity  often  hardens  weak- 
lings into  heroes  for  Arctic  discovery.     A  certain  degree  of 
intelligence  is    of   high    importance  in  the  crew.     In  many 
cases  resolution    in  the    midst  of  dangers   depends  on  their 
capacity  to  observe  and  think,  even  on  their  possessing  certain 
branches  of  knowledge.  The  greater  part  of  the  crew  of  the 
Tegetthoff  had  these  advantages.     But  men  who,  in  a  heavily- 
laded  sledge,  leave  the  old  and  take  to  recently-formed  ice, 
without  noticing  the  difference, — who  observe  a  frost-bitten 
foot  several  hours  after  the  mischief  has  been  done, — who  lose 
their  cartridges,  know  nothing  of  their  rifle,  and  little  more  of 
their  compass,  or  who  pass  on  without  observing  the  configura- 
tions of  the  land,  possess  an  indifference  indeed,  but  of  a  kind 
very  dangerous  to  themselves  and  to  the  whole  party,  though 
they  may  despise  death  as  much  as  Achilles  is  said  to  have 
done. 

4.  An  intelligent  crew,  from  their  greater  feeling  of  inde- 
pendence, is,  however,  more  difficult   to  command  than  an 
ignorant  one.     Devotion  and  blind  confidence  are  more  rarely 
found  in  an  educated  crew  ;  their  amenability  to  discipline  is 
dependent  on  the  good  example,  the  kindness  and  unalterable 
calmness  of  those  who  may  command  them.     The  law  of  a 
Polar  expedition  is  obedience,  and  its  basis  morality.     Punish- 


CHAP.  VI.]  POLAR  EQUIPMENTS  39 

ments  are  in  such  situations  a  miserable  and  depressing  means 
for  the  preservation  of  order,  and  then  employment,  especially 
in  a  private  undertaking,  will  tend  rather  to  loosen  than  to 
maintain  the  bonds  of  discipline.  If  Parry,  in  1820,  caused 
corporal  punishments  to  be  inflicted,  this  proves  the  greater 
facility  with  which  discipline  is  maintained  on  board  of  a 
man-of-war,  but  not  its  appropriateness  generally.  Coercion 
and  threats  produce  no  effect  ;  and  hence  the  folly  of  attempt- 
ing to  secure  success  by  sending  out  again  those  who  returned 
without  having  achieved  anything,  which  was  done  last 
century  by  the  authorities  of  St.  Petersburg  with  every 
unsuccessful  enterprise  on  the  Arctic  coasts  of  Siberia.  The 
regulation  that  the  most  meritorious  among  the  crew  shall  be 
specially  rewarded,  after  the  return  of  the  expedition,  provides 
for  the  recognition  of  merit,  without  exciting  ill  feeling  in  the 
less  worthy.  For  the  officers  scientific  success  may  be  a 
perfect  reward  of  their  toils,  but  for  the  crew  the  reward 
should  consist  of  more  material  advantages.  Money,  indeed, 
seems  a  feeble  motive  of  action  to  men  destined  to  withstand 
for  years  the  inclemency  of  Arctic  winters,  and  uncertain 
whether  they  shall  ever  return ;  but,  notwithstanding,  it 
is  the  only  form  by  which  men  without  sympathy  for  the 
aims  of  science  can  be  gained  for  the  attainment  of  such 
objects.  The  crews  of  Sir  John  Ross  received  for  a  martyr- 
dom of  four  years  passed  in  the  ice  about  £100  a  head  ; 
in  the  second  German  expedition  from  eight  to  twelve 
thalers  were  the  monthly  pay  of  each  sailor.  The  pay  of 
the  sledgers  in  the  Tegetthoff 'was,  however,  nearly  four  times 
as  much  ;  in  some  sledge  journeys  it  amounted  to  3,000 
gulden  a  man. 

5.  Contrary  to  what  might  be  expected,  the  re-employment 
of  those  who  have  served  before  is  not  to  be  recommended  as 
a  rule.  The  very  best  only  should  be  re-enlisted.  The  others 
are  too  much  disposed  to  place  their  experience  on  a  level 
with  that  of  their  commanders  ;  and  in  all  cases,  where  their 
opinions  differ  from  those  of  their  officers,  they  damage  by  a 
kind  of  passive  opposition  the  fundamental  law  of  an  expedi- 
tion— obedience.  Those  who  enter  the  Arctic  regions  for  the 
first  time  are  wont  to  receive  the  orders  of  an  experienced 
commander  with  an  attention  as  unquestioning  as  it  is 


40  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

respectful.     Married  men  also  should  be  excluded,   as  they 
were  by  Barentz  in  his  second  (1596)  expedition. 

6.  Some  of  the  crew  should  be  good  shots,  good  pedes- 
trians   and    mountaineers,    but    all    must    be    of    the    same 
nationality,  and   in   perfect   health.     The  least  symptom   of 
rheumatism,  of  diseases  of  the  lungs  and  the  eyes,  and  of 
certain  chronic   maladies  only  too  common  among  seamen, 
unfit  them  for  the  endurance  of  the  Polar  climate,  and  espe- 
cially for  sledge  expeditions.      Those  who    are   addicted   to 
drink  are  peculiarly  liable  to  the  scurvy. 

7.  The  medical  man  of  an  expedition,  besides  professional 
skill  and  experience,   must  possess  the  most  imperturbable 
patience,  for  to  many  of  his  patients  he  is  not  less  a  physician 
of  the  mind  than  of  the  body.     He  should  convince  himself 
of  the  sanitary  condition  of  the  crew  before  the  expedition 
starts,  although  it  may  have  been  previously  investigated  by 
medical  authorities  and  declared  satisfactory. 

8.  Since  an  expedition,  in  addition  to  its  scientific  functions, 
should  take  up  the  illustration  of  Nature  at  the   Pole,  the 
employment  of  a  photographer,  but  still  better  of  an  artist,  is 
very  desirable,  for  the  former  is  too  much  confined  to  the 
immediate  neighbourhood  of  the  ship  in  his  operations. 

9.  The  records  of  Arctic  adventure  in  former  days  tell  us 
of  equipments  strangely  incompatible  with  the  object  pursued. 
Their  commercial  purpose  constrained  them  to  fill  the  hold 
with  bales  of  silk,   instead  of  provisions  for  years;   but  the 
letters  of  recommendation  which  were  given  to  the  explorers 
of   the  North-East  passage  for  the  Saracen  princes  on  the 
route  to  Chatai  seem   peculiarly  ludicrous.     Some  justifica- 
tion may  be  discovered  for  Owczyn  taking  a  priest  with  him 
on  his  Siberian  expedition  (1734),  but  hardly  for  his  wanting 
fifty-seven  men  in  a  vessel  only  seventy  feet  long,  and  arming 
it    with   eight  falconets.      The  employment    of  a  drummer, 
twelve  privates  and  a  corporal,  on  Gmelin's  scientific  Siberian 
expedition,  is  still  more  unintelligible ;  more  so  than  Davis's 
band  of  music,  which  was  intended  to  charm  the  feelings  of 
the  Eskimos  and  dispose  them  to  peaceful  proceedings,  his  pre- 
decessor Frobisher  having  had  the  saddest  experience  of  their 
barbarism.     Other  expeditions  by  the  too  plentiful  distribution 
of  knives  and  hatchets  among  the   Eskimos  placed  them  in  a 


CHAP.  VI.] 


POLAR  EQUIPMENTS. 


position  seriously  to  threaten  the  white  man,  and  even  at  the 
present  day  the  so-called  "  Wilden-kiste "  often  contains 
articles  little  calculated  to  inspire  the  natives  with  a  high 
opinion  of  our  moral  superiority. 

10.  In  fitting  out  a  Polar  expedition,  all  respect  should  be 
paid  to  the  principle  of  bestowing  on  those  who  are  for  a  time 
banished,  the  greatest  possible  amount  of  comfort.     The  pro- 
portions of  a  ship,  and  the  space  at  its  disposal,  narrow  the 
limits  available  for  this  end  ;    and  since  the  return   to   the 
employment,  as  at  the  first,  of  small  vessels,  even  these  limits 
have  been  considerably  diminished. 

11.  The  following   table   shows   that   the   employment   of 
small  vessels  was  the  principle  at  first  followed,  although  the 
English    undertakings   even    of    this    present    century   never 
thoroughly  adopted  the  example  of  a  Fotherby,  a  Baffin,  and 
a  Ross  : — 


THE  EXPEDITIONS  OF 

TONNAGE  OF  THE  SHIPS. 

PROVISIONED  FOR 

CREW. 

Willoughby  .     .     . 
Frobisher 

Pett  Jackman     .      . 
Davis  

A.D. 

1553 
1576 
1577 
1580 
1585 
2nd  expedn. 
1604 
1606 
1607 
1608 
1609 
1610 
1610 
1611 
1615 
1616 
1631 
1631 
1676 
1746 
1818 
1819 
1821 
1860 
1869 

120 

25 
1  80 
40 

50 
10 

70 
40 

90 
25 
30 
2O 

35 

£ 

1  60 
10 
3o 

1  8  months 

15 

42 

IO 

15 
15 

20 

19 

45 
15 
29 

Weymouth   .     .     . 
Knight     .... 
Hudson   .... 
»         .... 
James  Poole       .     . 
Hudson   .... 
Smith  . 

53 

120 

Mostly  for  ) 
one  year  > 
only.         ) 

1  8  months 
18      „ 
16      „ 

2|  years 

I*  ;;: 

2 

70 

55 
50 
5o 

20 

58 
80 
70 

1  80 

385 

375 

200 

% 

140 
252 
1  80 

200 

James  Poolc      ,     . 
Fotherby  .... 
Baffin  .... 
Fox     

James       .... 
Wood       .... 
Moor        .... 
Ross    

Parry 

Liitke       .... 
Hayes      .... 
Koldewey     .     .     . 

12.  The    inspection    of  this  table  shows   that  it   was  the 
practice  of  the  sixteenth  century  to  send  out  fleets  of  ships 


42  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

of  a  very  small  size,  that  in  the  seventeenth  one  small  ship 
was  commissioned,  and  that  the  employment  of  two  vessels 
has  been  the  rule  since  ;  and  this  would  have  been  still  more 
evident,  if  the  various  Franklin  expeditions  had  been  in- 
cluded in  the  above  table.  In  1829  Sir  John  Ross  started 
with  a  ship  drawing  eighteen  feet,  but  changed  afterwards  to- 
one  drawing  eight  feet  ;  and  from  eight  to  twelve  feet  is  now 
the  recognised  draught  in  Polar  ships.  Large  vessels  require 
a  numerous  crew,  and  if  they  have  not  been  built  exclusively 
for  the  purpose  of  Polar  exploration,  their  small  economy  of 
space  prevents  their  being  fitted  out  for  more  than  two  years 
and  a  half.  In  1819  Parry's  ship,  the  large  Fitry,  had,  with  a 
draught  of  eighteen  feet,  provisions  for  only  two  and  a  half 
years,  whereas  the  Victory  (1829)  of  Ross  with  only  seven  feet 
draught  had  on  board,  besides  stores  for  the  same  period,  a 
steam-engine  and  coals  for  a  thousand  hours'  steaming.  The 
Russian  Novaya  Zemlya  navigators  of  this  century  have 
adopted  vessels  of  a  size  which  must  be  destructive  of  all 
comfort  and  convenience.  These  vessels  are  thirty  or  forty 
feet  long,  with  a  draught  of  five  or  six  feet,  and  a  crew  of 
nine  or  ten  men.  But  Arctic  ships  must  have  a  crew  above 
the  ordinary  strength  and  be  provided  with  steam-power  ;  so. 
that,  allowing  for  the  necessary  space  for  the  quarters  of  the 
crew,  for  the  engines  and  the  coalbunkers,  little  room  will  be 
left  for  the  stowage  of  stores.  But  this  little  should  be  re- 
served for  well-chosen  provisions  stowed  away  so  as  to  avoid 
all  empty  spaces,  and  secure  the  greatest  amount  of  resistance 
to  lateral  pressure.  The  weakest  parts  of  a  ship  are  always 
the  spaces  left  for  air  in  the  quarters  of  the  men.  A  crew, 
which  is  exposed  to  threatening  dangers  from  the  ice,  will 
never  regret  the  strengthening  of  these  void  spaces  by  heavy 
horizontal  tie-beams,  removable  when  the  ship  is  in  the  winter 
harbour,  and  so  adjusted  as  not  to  impede  communication. 
The  mere  suspension  of  heavy  beams  against  the  hull  of  a 
ship  does  not  always  answer  the  purpose  of  protection,  since 
the  pressure  of  the  ice  frequently  drives  away  these  protecting 
timbers.  The  practice,  however,  is  not  absolutely  to  be 
rejected. 

13.  The  daily  allowance  of  solid  food  for  the  effectives  in 
an  Arctic  expedition  amounts  to  about  two  pounds,  and  in 


CHAP,  vi.]  POLAR  EQUIPMENTS.  43 


sledge  expeditions  to  2}  pounds,  of  which  half  a  pound  is 
bread  and  one  pound  preserved  meat.  Besides  the  usual 
provisions,  large  supplies  of  preserved  vegetables,  of  cocoa,  of 
extract  of  meat,  of  rice,  of  preserved  peas,  of  dried  farina- 
ceous food  (such  as  macaroni),  are  very  desirable.  Salted 
meat  is  to  be  avoided  as  much  as  possible.  The  luxury  of 
fresh  bread  twice  a  week  instead  of  the  hard  ship's  biscuit  is 
an  essential  means  of  promoting  health,  and  the  want  of 
yeast  for  its  preparation  may  be  supplied  by  "  baking  powder." 
Once  a  day  a  ration  of  lemon-juice  should  be  served  out  as  a 
preservative  against  scurvy,  and  anti-scorbutic  victuals  should 
be  laid  in  abundantly.  Plenty  of  tea  and  tobacco  is  indis- 
pensable ;  the  want  of  these  is  painfully  felt,  especially  by 
the  sailors.  Cases  have  actually  occurred,  where  crews  have 
ground  the  wooden  blocks  of  the  rigging  to  powder,  to  serve 
as  tea,  and  have  used  the  hoops  of  casks  for  tobacco. 

14.  The  moderate  enjoyment  of  spirituous  liquors  is  much 
to  be  recommended,  as  their  influence  on  health  and  sociality 
is  of  great  importance.  The  preservation,  however,  of  a 
sufficient  stock  of  wine,  especially  in  winter,  is  a  matter  of 
much  difficulty,  since  most  kinds  freeze  at  21°  F.  or  I4J  F.  As 
long  as  the  ship  is  afloat,  as  it  generally  is  when  winters  are 
passed  in  the  ice,  it  is  advisable  to  preserve  the  supply  of 
wine  at  the  bottom  of  the  hold,  and  to  place  all  other  things 
most  liable  to  be  frozen  in  layers  above  it.  But  if  a  ship  be 
nearly  or  entirely  out  of  water,  it  is  advisable  to  keep  the 
wine,  and  other  indispensable  liquids,  in  the  empty  spaces  of 
the  cabin,  under  the  cabin  table,  near  the  stove,  below  the 
berths,  and  under  the  sky-light  after  it  has  been  closed  for  the 
winter.  Only  absolute  want  of  space  justifies  the  preparation 
of  chemical  wine^  since  the  volume  of  its  constituent  parts 
without  water  is  only  a  fifth  of  real  wine;  and  under  all 
circumstances  chemical  wine  is  but  a  miserable  shift,  and  the 
beer  (even  the  spruce  beer  of  Sir  John  Ross)  which  the  English 
used  to  manufacture  on  board  ship  from  the  essence  of  malt 
and  hops  is  far  preferable.  The  rum  and  cognac,  especially 
for  sledge  expeditions,  in  order  to  save  weight  should  contain 
the  greatest  possible  amount  of  alcohol,  for  its  dilution  before 
use  is  a  matter  of-  no  difficulty. 

1  A  decoction  prepared  by  Dr.  Kepes,  the  physician  of  the  l^egetthoff. 


44  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 


15.  During  the  winter,   residence  in  the  ship  itself  is  pre- 
ferable to  living  in  log-houses,  because  the  ship  can  be  more 
easily  heated  and  suffers  less  from  the  accumulation  of  ice. 
But  since  a  ship  in  the  Arctic  Sea  ceases  for  ten  months  of  the 
year  to  be  a  ship  and  becomes  in  fact  a  house,  this  should  be 
kept  in  view  when  she  is  being  fitted  out. 

1 6.  The  place  where  the  men  live  is  always  in  the  fore-part 
of  the  ship,  but  their  berths  should  be  changed  in  a  certain 
rotation,  because  of  the  inequality  of  the  condensation.     It  is 
not  advisable  to  place  the  kitchen  in  the  quarters  of  the  crew 
in  order  to  diminish  the  consumption  of   coals,  because  an 
accumulation  of  moisture  is  thereby  increased.     The  officers 
and  savans  occupy  a  common  messroom  in  the  after-part  of 
the  ship,  and  sleep  in  little  cabins  ranged  round  it.    The  power 
to  withdraw  occasionally  from  the  presence  of  those  who  must 
be  together  for  years  is  an  important  element  of  harmony. 
Sir  John  Ross  and  his  officers  in  1833,  even  in  the  miserable 
hut  built  on  the   Fury  coast,  did  not  occupy  the  common 
messroom  heated  by  a  stove,  but  preferred  separate  cabins, 
the  temperature  of  which  seldom  rose  above  the  freezing  point, 
and  in  which  they  had  to  suffer  much  from  the  accumulation 
of  ice.     All  the  living  rooms  should  be  provided  with  water- 
proof carpets.     Their  heating  by  means  of  the  common  stoves 
is  objectionable,  because  of  the  unequal  distribution  of  warmth. 
An  even  temperature  is  best  maintained  by  the  use  of  the 
Meidinger   "  Fullofen,"  which  has  the  further  advantage  of 
consuming  only  a  small  quantity  of  coals.     Hot-air  flues  are, 
perhaps,  preferable  even  to  these,  because  they  better  prevent 
the  freezing  of  the  moisture  in  the  cabins,  and  indeed  in  every 
part  of  the  ship. 

17.  An  Arctic  ship  should  be  provided  with  an  iron-plated 
washing  and  drying  closet,  without  which  the  washing  of 
linen  would  be  restricted  to  the  few  weeks  of  summer  weather. 
This  closet  may  also  be  used  as  a  bath-room,  an  important 
means  of  promoting  health.  The  lighting  of  the  living 
rooms  by  petroleum  sufficiently  answers  all  purposes  ;  in  the 
cabins,  however,  stearine  candles  are  to  be  preferred  either  to 
it  or  any  other  oil.  The  construction  of  the  lamps  used  in 
making  observations  in  the  open  air  during  the  long  Arctic 
darkness  is  a  matter  of  the  greatest  importance.  Those  used 


CHAP.  VI.]  POLAR  EQUIPMENTS.  45 

in  the  second  German  North-Pole  Expedition  were  of  peculiar 
excellence,  and  never  failed  in  their  difficult  service.  Massive 
lamps,  with  glass  globes  protected  with  wire,  and  burning 
petroleum  in  preference  to  common  oil,  should  be  used  on 
deck,  and  as  they  are  employed  for  so  many  purposes  and 
exposed  to  so  many  risks,  a  plentiful  supply  of  them  should 
be  provided.  In  the  huts  on  the  deck,  built  over  the  hatch- 
ways, train-oil  may  be  used  with  advantage,  if  the  lamps  are 
so  constructed  that  the  flame  may  heat  the  reservoir  contain- 
ing the  oil. 

1 8.  So  long  as  the  crew  remains  on  board  the  ship,  their 
clothing,  even  in  the  severest  winter,  needs  but  little  attention. 
Thick  close-fitting  woollen  under-garments,  knitted  woollen 
gloves,  outer-garments  of  strong  cloth,  are  in  all  cases  suffi- 
cient on  deck,  and  in  all  those  parts  of  the  ship  which  are 
kept  at  a   certain    temperature.      Leather    boots  lined  with 
fur  were  long  considered  an  indispensable  requisite  for  Polar 
expeditions,  but  they    have  not  maintained  their  character, 
as    they   are    very    heavy,    become    unpliable    in    frost,    and 
soon    quite  useless  through  its  action    and    the   wearing   off 
of  the  fur. 

19.  Before  the  departure  of  the  expedition,  all  the  instru- 
ments should  be  thoroughly  cleansed  from  oil  by  a  practical 
optician,  and  the  fire-arms  should  undergo  a  like  operation  at 
the   hands   of  the   gunmaker,    and   their  barrels   should   be 
browned  to  protect  them  better  from  rust.     The  ammunition, 
powder  and  matches  to  blast  the  ice,  alcohol  and  petroleum, 
should  be  stowed  in  the  after-part  of  the  ship,  and  the  two 
latter  should  be  reacned  only  through  a  closely-fitting  pump. 
A  very  ample  supply  of  alcohol,  flannel,  buffalo-skins,  strong 
cloth,  water-proof  canvas,  felt,  leather,  reindeer  shoes,   snow 
boots,  shovels,  cramp  irons,  poles,  &c.,  articles  which  are  too 
often  overlooked,  should  be  taken,  both  from  their  usefulness 
on  board  ship  and  also  on  land  expeditions. 

20.  The  costs  of  Polar  expeditions  have  relatively  rather 
diminished  than  increased.     The  expenses  of   Willoughby's 
expedition  300  years  ago  amounted  to  the  sum — quite  enor- 
mous for  that  day — of  £6,000  ;  Moor's  (1746)  cost  £10,000  ; 
while  Back's  difficult  but  successful  undertaking  to  explore 
the  great  Fish-river  (1833 — 1835),  only  £5,000.     The  Siberian 


46  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [INTRO. 

expedition  of  Middendorf  (1844) — costing  only  13,300  rubles 
(£i,7 I 7) — was  a  matchless  example  of  extraordinary  achieve- 
ments with  little  expenditure.  The  costs  of  the  various 
Franklin  Expeditions  from  1848  to  1854  amounted,  according 
to  the  statement  of  the  English  Admiralty,  to  twenty  million 
francs  (£833,333) ;  those  of  the  second  German  North-Pole 
Expedition  to  120,000  thalers  (£11,000),  and  the  expenses  of 
our  own  Austrian-Hungarian  North  Pole  Expedition  to  220,000 
gulden  (£18,333). 


THE    PIONEER    VOYAGE    OF    THE 
ISBJORN. 

JUNE   20—  OCTOBER   4,    1871. 


THE     PIONEER    VOYAGE    OF    THE 
"ISBJORN." 


I.  THE  failure  of  the  second  German  Arctic  expedition 
directed  the  future  efforts  of  Polar  exploration  to  the  seas 
of  Novaya  Zemlya.  Although  the  geographical  position  and 
political  relations  of  Austria  prevented  its  Government  from 
taking  any  active  part  in  the  great  geographical  problems  and 
questions  of  our  times,  an  interest  in  Polar  discovery  had 
been  excited  in  her  statesmen,  which  gradually  ripened  into 
a  determination  to  send  its  flag,  renowned  for  its  military 
fame,  to  consecrate  struggles  on  the  peaceful  domain  of 
scientific  exploration.  The  magnanimous  act  of  Graf  Wilczek, 
contributing  40,000  florins  towards  the  equipment  of  an 
Austro-Hungarian  expedition,  not  only  strengthened  but  also 
endowed  the  resolve.  In  order,  however,  to  obviate  the 
possibility  of  spending  large  sums  on  a  plan  which  might  be 
unfeasible,  or  if  feasible,  of  little  value,  it  was  determined  to 
despatch  a  pioneer  expedition  to  the  seas  of  Novaya  Zemlya 
under  the  joint  command  of  Lieutenant  Weyprecht  and 
myself.  The  knowledge  and  experience  gained  in  that 
voyage — which  is  described  in  the  following  pages — induced 
the  Austrian  Government  to  send  another  and  more  powerful 
vessel  to  those  seas,  equipped  to  pass  two  or  more  winters 
in  the  ice. 

2.  It  seemed  to  be  established  as  the  result  of  many 
expeditions,  that  almost  invincible  difficulties  opposed  the 
reaching  of  the  central  Arctic  regions  by  the  routes  through 


50  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 

Baffin's  Bay,  Behring's  Straits,  along  the  coast  of  Greenland, 
and  from  Spitzbergen,  mainly  because  on  them  all  we  are  met 
by  the  great  Arctic  currents,  which  act  as  channels  to  carry 
off  the  ice  of  the  Polar  basin.  These  currents  carry  with 
them  vast  masses  of  ice,  which  they  deposit  on  all  the  coasts 
which  they  strike.  On  the  results  of  many  Norwegian, 
Russian,  and  German  voyages,  partly  in  the  interests  of 
science,  partly  in  the  interests  of  commerce,  many  geo- 
graphers maintained  that  the  traces  of  the  Gulf  Stream  did 
not  disappear  at  the  North  Cape,  but  rather  that  it  exercised 
a  considerable  influence  on  places  and  in  latitudes  not  before 
imagined,  as,  for  instance,  on  the  north-east  coasts  of 
Novaya  Zemlya.  An  expedition,  therefore,  which  followed  the 
course  of  the  warmer  waters  of  the  Gulf  Stream  would  find 
fewer  and  less  formidable  obstacles,  than  on  the  routes 
exposed  to  the  Arctic  currents,  carrying  with  them  colossal 
masses  of  ice  towards  the  south.  On  the  east  of  Spitzbergen 
there  is  a  land  which  has,  indeed,  been  often  seen,  but  never 
reached,  or  even  attempted  to  be  reached — Gillis'  Land — lying 
in  the  course  of  the  Gulf  Stream ;  and  it  is  a  probable 
assumption,  that  navigable  water  would  be  found  under  its 
western  coast,  as  at  Spitzbergen,  where  80°  N.  Lat.  can  be 
reached  every  year  without  any  difficulty.  If,  then,  this 
stream  extends  still  further  to  the  north — which  is  probable 
according  to  the  soundings  ta*ken  by  the  Swedes — it  is  reason- 
able to  expect  that  higher  latitudes  may  be  reached  on  this 
than  on  any  other  route. 

3.  It  is  remarkable,  that  the  seas  between  Spitzbergen  and 
Novaya  Zemlya  were  utterly  unknown  to  science.  No  expedi- 
tion had  ever  been  sent  thither,  though  many  things  seemed 
to  invite  and  favour  the  venture,  and  Dr.  Petermann  had  long 
endeavoured  to  organize  a  powerful  and  well-equipped  ex- 
pedition to  explore  higher  latitudes  on  this  route.  At  length 
Lieutenant  Weyprecht  and  I  undertook  a  voyage  of  recon- 
naissance to  those  waters,  in  order  to  ascertain  whether  the 
climate  and  the  state  of  the  fee  were  as  favourable  in  reality, 
as  they  seemed  to  be  in  theory.  No  attempt  was  to  be  made 
to  reach  high  latitudes  or  to  make  important  geographical 
discoveries.  The  small  means  at  our  command  forbade 
either.  Our  aims  were  more  limited  ;  they  referred  to  the 


PIONEER  VOYAGE  OF  THE  "ISBJORN."  51 

temperature  of  the  water  and  the  air,  to  the  currents,  to  the 
state  of  the  ice,  to  the  probability  of  success  in  the  following 
year  (1872),  and  lastly,  to  opportunities  for  extended  sledge 
journeys.  We  were  to  sail  from  Tromsoe  about  the  middle 
of  June,  and  return  thither  by  the  middle  of  September. 

4.  In  order  to  diminish  expenses,  we  chartered  at  Tromsoe 
a  small  sailing  ship.     A  steamer  would,   indeed,  have  been 
more   serviceable,  but  the  cost  would  have  been  quadupled, 
without  any  adequate  advantage.     The  Isbjorn  (i.e.,  Ice-bear) 
was  a  vessel  of  fifty -tons,  cutter-rigged,  55  feet  long,   17  feet 
broad,  with  a  draught  of  6  feet.     Her  bows  were  protected  with 
sheet-iron,  two  feet  above,  and  two  feet    under,  water.     She 
was  new  and  strong,  and  made  with  us  her  first  voyage.     We 
had  also  two  small  boats,   and  a  so-called   "  Fang-boot " — 
whale-boat.     She  was  commanded  by  Captain  Kjelsen,  and 
had  as  a  crew  a  harpooner,  four  sailors,   a  carpenter,  and  a 
cook — all  Norwegians.     We  were  provided  with  the  requisite 
instruments  by  the  Imperial  Geographical  Institute,  and  were 
provisioned   for  four  or  five  months.     The  Austrian  Consul 
Aagaard  aided  us  to  the  utmost  of  his  ability  in  the  equip- 
ment of  the  vessel.     It  must  be  observed,  that  we  had   no 
direct  command  or  control  over  the  vessel  and  its  crew ;  the 
responsibility  for  the  ship,  and  the  immediate  command  over 
its  crew,  belonged  to  the  skipper  Kjelsen.    Weyprecht  was, 
however,  the  real  commander.   "  , 

5.  The  information  we  gathered  concerning  the  state  of  the 
ice  in  the  region  of  our  projected  exploration,  was  exceedingly 
contradictory.    While,  for  example,  Dr.  Bessels,  in  the  steamer 
Albert,  of  Rosendal,  discovered  a  branch  of  the  Gulf  Stream 
with  a  temperature  of  41°  F.  at  the  ice-barrier  on  the  south 
of  Gillis'  Land,  Dr.  Petermann  sent  us  a  letter  of  Lament,  in 
which  he  said  :  "  Every  year  the   ice   appears  to  me  more 
formidable."     The  whalers  of  Tromsoe,  who  knew  the  ice  of 
that   region  only  from  hearsay,  and  could  give  no  positive 
information  as  to  its  limits,  uttered  many  unfavourable  prog- 
nostications as  to  the  possibility  of  penetrating  that  frozen 
sea,  or  of  approaching  Gillis'  Land  from  the  south.   The  region 
was  utterly  unknown,  even  to  many  skippers  who  sailed  from 
Spitzbergen  to  Novaya  Zemlya.     The  few  attempts  to  pene- 
trate to  that  land,  first  seen  in    1707,  and   regarded  by  the 


52  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 

Swedes  as  a  continent,  had  been  unsuccessful.  So  also  their 
efforts  to  reach  it  from  the  south-west  in  1864  and  1868. 
Captain  Koldewey's  attempt  also,  which  was  made  from  the 
"  Thousand  Isles"  three  months  before  the  last-named  voyage^ 
had  been  attended  with  the  same  want  of  success.  None  of 
these  expeditions  had  passed  beyond  the  ice-barrier,  and  their 
failures  contributed  greatly  to  strengthen  the  opinion,  that  the 
Novaya  Zemlya  seas  were  unnavigable. 

6.  All  our  inquiries  were  met  also  with  the  prediction  of  an 
exceedingly  unfavourable  year  for   the   ice.     The   spring   of 
1871  had  been  unusually  severe,  and  even  to  the  middle  of 
June  the   northern  parts    of    Norway    were    covered    with   a 
mantle  of  snow  reaching  down  to  the  sea.     It  was  inferred, 
therefore,  that  there  would  be  an  excessive  accumulation  of 
ice  in  the  seas  further  north.     We  heard  even,  that  there  was 
ice  at  the  distance  of  about  twenty  (Norwegian)  miles  from 
North  Cape.     And  it  was  certainly  true,  that  the  north  winds, 
which   prevailed    for   some   weeks,    kept  a  number   of  Nor- 
wegian fishing  and  seal-hunting  vessels  weatherbound  off  the 
"  Scheeren."     All    this   notwithstanding,    we    determined   to 
keep  to  our  plan  of  sailing  to  Hope  Island,  and  of  following 
from  thence  the  ice-barrier  towards  the  east,  our  progress,  of 
course,  being  dependent  on  favourable  conditions  of  the  ice, 
and  perhaps  on  the  influences  of  the  Gulf  Stream.    As  it  was 
within  the  verge  of  possibility  to   make   Gillis'   Land  during 
the  season  of  our  operations,  we  considered  it  advisable  not 
to  pass  beyond  40°  E.  Long,  while  we  penetrated  northward. 

7.  On  the  2Oth  of  June  we  left  Tromsoe  during  a  drizzling 
snow-storm,   and   while  we  were  sailing  up  the  "  Qualsund  " 
without  a  pilot,  we  touched  "the  ground — a  danger  we  incurred 
from   the   desire  of  our    married    sailors  to  put  their  wives 
ashore,  after  leave-taking,  as  near  the  land  as  possible.     At 
Rysoe  we  fell  in  with  the  fleet  of  the   Tromsoe  fishing-boats 
at  anchor,  waiting  for  a  change  of  weather,  and  with  them 
some  vessels  which,  we  thought,  would  have  been  by  this  time 
in  the  ice,  having  left  Tromstfe  four  weeks  before. 

8.  The    rocky  islands  off  the  coast  of  Finnmark  are  sur- 
rounded by  bleak  cliffs,  rising  to  the  height  of  2,500  feet,  and 
upwards.     Trees  cease  to  grow  there ;  occasionally  the  birch 
appears,  but  never  in  sufficient  numbers  to  form  a  wood.    The 


54  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 

numerous  islands  of  a  gneiss  formation  show  the  same  land- 
scape which  characterizes  Norway — indescribably  bleak  table- 
lands, deep  secluded  valleys  and  gorges,  interspersed  with 
lonely  mountain  lakes.  The  bold,  picturesque  outlines  of 
these  islands  are  exceedingly  striking,  though  their  fertility 
is  meagre  in  the  extreme.  The  solitary  rocky  shores  are 
inhabited  by  poor  families,  secluded  from  the  world,  and 
having  little  intercourse  with  each  other.  They  live  for  the 
most  part  on  the  fish  which  they  catch.  The  remains  of  fish 
round  these  settlements  render  their  approach  exceedingly 
disagreeable ;  on  the  Loffoden  Islands  a  guano  manufactory 
has  been  established,  which  turns  this  refuse  to  good  account. 
Tromsoe  or  Hammerfest  appears  in  their  eyes  as  the  glory 
and  pride  of  the  world.  Wewere  detained  two  days — June  24 
and  25 — by  contrary  winds,  at  Sandoe,  an  island  covered  with 
sea-sand  full  of  small  mussel  shells,  to  the  height  of  600  feet. 
Ascending  an  elevated  peak  of  this  island,  2.000  feet  high,  we 
saw  a  panorama  of  countless  cliffs  of  all  sizes  stretching  down 
to  Andeness,  and  opposite  to  us,  the  gloomy,  rugged  wastes 
of  Norway,  which  show  iron-bound  walls,  waterfalls,  and  bleak 
headlands,  without  woods,  meadows,  or  habitations.  For  many 
hours  we  were  mocked  by  an  eagle,  which,  now  soaring  high, 
now  darting  down  with  rapid  flight,  gave  his  unwieldy  pur- 
suers a  stiff  and  exhausting  climb.  We  at  last  put  to  sea  on 
the  26th  of  June,  and  passed  the  enormous  rocky  pile  of 
Fugloe,  down  the  precipitous  face  of  which  the  inhabitants 
descend  by  means  of  ropes  to  get  the  down  of  the  Eider- 
geese.  Next  day  we  were  out  of  sight  of  land.  The  breeze 
freshened,  and,  as  we  sailed  further  to  the  north,  we  saw  many 
whales.  On  the  28th  of  June  we  came  on  the  first  ice — a 
sight  which  reminds  the  Polar  navigator  that  he  has  reached 
his  home  !  Driven  down  by  the  north  wind,  its  fragments  lay 
thickly  on  the  misty  horizon  like  gleaming  points.  We  were 
now  south-east  of  Bear  Island  in  73°  40'  N.  Lat.  and  21° 
E.  Long.,  and  found  the  ice  so  broken  up  that  we  did  not 
hesitate  to  penetrate  it,  in  order  to  find  out  the  latitude  in 
which  its  closed  masses  would  appear.  We  passed  through 
forty  miles  of  this  loose  drift-ice,  and  then  came  on  the  pack 
in  74°  30'  N.  Lat.  and  23°  E.  Long.  Already,  on  the  3Oth  of 
June,  we  had  experienced  the  powerlessness  of  a  small  sailing 


PIONEER  VOYAGE  OF  THE  "ISBJORN."  55 

vessel  in  such  circumstances.  The  calms  which  had  set  in 
rendered  it  impossible  to  steer  the  ship,  just  when  the  ice  was 
drifting  in  wild  confusion.  In  spite  of  all  our  efforts  to  warp, 
the  ship  was  inclosed  by  ice — in  fact,  beset.  During  our 
captivity  of  ten  days,  there  was  an  alternation  of  fogs  and 
gales  with  heavy  sea-swells.  The  neighbourhood  of  floes 
sometimes  small,  sometimes  large,  which  constantly  shifted 
their  places,  kept  us  in  a  state  of  continual  watchfulness. 
The  Isbjorn,  on  some  of  these  days,  sustained  such  severe 
pressures  from  the  ice,  that  her  safety  was  imperilled.  On 
the  4th  of  July  we  had  heavy  storms  from  the  south-east, 
which  packed  the  ice  still  closer,  and,  though  the  sea  is 
generally  quite  calm  within  the  ice,  it  was  otherwise  on  this 
occasion.  In  the  afternoon  we  heard  through  the  dense  fog 
the  thunder  of  the  ocean  breaking  on  the  outer  edge  of  the 
ice,  and  the  roar  increased  as  the  sea  rose.  Our  attempts  to 
haul  further  into  the  ice  and  still-water  were  fruitless  ;  the 
ship  was  pressed  too  firmly,  and  was  not  to  be  moved  from 
its  place.  Our  position  became  more  and  more  critical  as  the 
sea  continued  to  rise.  During  the  whole  night  the  waves 
roared  and  boiled  around  us.  The  rudder  groaned  under  the 
pressure  of  the  floes,  and  had  to  be  made  fast  to  prevent  its- 
being  broken  off.  A  mass  of  ice  grazing  past  the  davits 
utterly  destroyed  one  of  our  boats.  The  critical  nature  of  such 
a  situation  is  simply  the  uncertainty  as  to  the  amount  of 
pressure  which  a  ship  can  sustain.  Towards  evening  the  fog 
lifted  and  rolled  away,  presenting  a  spectacle  of  fearful  gran- 
deur. All  round  us  lay  the  open  sea  dashing  against  the  ice, 
which  was  itself  in  wild  motion.  Floes  and  icebergs  were 
driven  about  by  the  waves,  and  their  fragments  strewed  in  all 
directions.  At  midnight  our  little  ship  sustained  shock  after 
shock,  and  her  timbers  strained  and  creaked.  The  "  brash  " 
of  .the  crushed  ice,  which  had  gathered  round  the  ship,  pre- 
vented her  destruction.  As  the  storm  abated,  the  larger 
masses  of  ice  moved  off  to  the  edge  of  the  horizon,  so  that 
in  the  morning  we  could  not  see  open  water  from  the  deck. 
The  day  broke  :  what  a  change  in  the  ice !  The  sea  was 
calm,  and  a  long  swell  died  out  on  its  outer  edge.  Piles  of 
ice  all  round  us, — a  weird  and  deathlike  calm  !  The  heavens 
were  cloudless  ;  the  countless  blocks  and  masses  of  ice  stood 


56  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 

out  against  the  sky  in  blue  neutral  shadow,  and  the  more 
level  fields  between  them  sparkled  like  silver  as  they  shone  in 
the  sun.  The  movement  of  the  sea  beyond  the  ice  abated, 
"  leads  "  within  the  floes,  hitherto  scarcely  perceptible,  widened 
out.  But  again  the  sky  was  overcast,  the  sea  assumed  the 
colour  of  lead,  though  it  continued  quite  calm  and  the 
"  ice-blink  "  appeared  on  the  northern  horizon. 

9.  On  the  loth  of  July  the*  ship  under  full  sail  forced  her 
way  through  the  floes,  which  were  still  somewhat  close,  and 
reached  open  water.  The  masses  of  ice  through  which  we 
pressed  were  of  considerable  size.  We  now  continued  our 
course,  which  had  been  interrupted  in  the  manner  described, 
along  the  ice-barrier  in  a  north-easterly  direction.  After 
leaving  the  Norwegian  coast,  the  depth  of  the  sea  decreased  con- 
siderably. We  were  now  on  the  bank  of  Bear  Island,  and  we 
found  bottom  at  90  metres  (49*2 13  fathoms).  Our  course  was 
impeded  by  calms,  currents  and  winds  from  the  east,  and 
•even  in  the  middle  of  July  by  severe  storms.  We  were  some- 
times in  drift-ice  and  sometimes  outside  of  it.  We  soon 
discovered  that  the  ice  of  these  seas  was  not  to  be  compared 
with  the  vast  masses  of  the  Greenland  seas.  The  floes  we 
saw  were  not  more  than  one  year  old.  As  we  sailed  eastward, 
the  icebergs  were  neither  so  numerous  nor  so  large,  and  dis- 
appeared almost  entirely  at  40°  E.  Long.,  which  we  reached  on 
the  2  ist  of  July,  after  we  had  followed  the  ice-barriers  from  74° 
to  75°  3°'  N,  Lat.  Here  we  penetrated  within  them.  Though 
•drift-ice  lay  on  every  side,  a  steamer  would  have  found 
nothing  to  arrest  her  progress.  But  the  prevalence  sometimes 
of  east  winds,  sometimes  of  calms,  the  constant  occurrence  of 
fogs,  the  defects  of  our  vessel,  the  little  authority  we  had  over 
the  crew  when  extraordinary  labour  was  demanded,  the  great 
extent  of  the  region  to  be  explored, — all  these  difficulties 
prevented  our  pressing  on  in  this  direction.  We  therefore 
turned,  July  22,  in  a  westerly  direction,  in  order  to  explore 
another  opening  in  the  ice,  into  which  we  advanced  for  about 
fifteen  miles,  and  found  floes  not  more  than  a  year  old  lying 
so  loosely  together,  that  our  ship  under  full  sail  seemed  to 
pass  over  them,  much  in  the  same  fashion  as  a  sledge  glides 
over  a  snow-covered  plain.  But  again  our  course  had  to  be 
altered,  and  Weyprecht  steered  the  vessel  in  a  south-westerly 


PIONEER  VOYAGE  OF  THE  "  ISBJORN."  57 

direction  to  the  ice-barrier.  In  76°  30'  N.  Lat  and  29°  E. 
Long,  we  came  on  high  and  close  masses  of  ice,  and  escaped 
with  much  difficulty  (July  29)  the  danger  of  being  again 
"  beset" 

10.  We  had  meantime  been  convinced  that,  though  the 
state  of  the  ice  was  on  the  whole  so  favourable,  we  could  not, 
with  the  means  at  our  command  and  with  a  crew  not  trained 
to  habits  of  obedience,  do  more  than  carry  out  our  original 
intention.  We  could  not  make  up  for  the  defects  of  our 
sailing  craft  by  any  special  exertion  on  the  part  of  the  crew. 
Could  we  have  done  this,  we  might  have  penetrated  further 
in  a  northerly  direction ;  though  at  this  late  period  of  the 
summer  we  could  not  calculate  on  being  able  to  return,  and  by 
the  end  of  October  our  provisions  would  have  been  exhausted. 
We  could  only,  therefore,  attempt  to  reach  Gillis'  Land,  and 
ascertain  whether  it  possessed  the  importance  attributed  to  it 
by  the  Swedes.  A  safe  harbour  had  therefore  to  be  sought, 
in  which  the  ship  might  be  left,  while  a  party  in  a  boat  should 
make  for  the  mysterious  land.  Such  a  harbour  we  expected 
to  find  at  Cape  Leigh-Smith.  We  therefore  held  to  the  west- 
ward, towards  the  Stor-Fiord.  It  is  an  extremely  hazardous 
thing,  demanding  incessant  attention,  to  tack  and  cruise  at 
the  ice-barrier  during  the  continuance  of  fogs  and  with  heavy 
seas  and  unfavourable  winds.  Not  unfrequently,  the  ice-blink 
is  seen  all  round  the  horizon,  and  we  discover  that  we  have 
come  into  a  great  "  ice-hok,"  or  a  calm  makes  it  impossible 
to  steer  the  ship,  just  when  a  strong  current  is  bearing  her 
into  the  thickest  of  the  ice-masses.  We  had  our  share  of 
these  and  other  risks  till  we  suddenly  beheld,  while  sailing  in 
a  fog  among  icebergs  a  hundred  feet  high,  the  long  stretching 
plateau  of  Hope  Island.  According  to  Weyprecht's  observa- 
tions, there  is  an  error  of  40'  in  latitude  in  the  position  of  this 
island  on  the  Swedish  maps.  The  real  position  of  the  south- 
west cape  of  Hope  Island  is  76°  29'  N.  Lat,  and  25°  E. 
Long.  Seduced  by  a  great  opening  in  the  ice,  and  deviating 
from  our  course  for  a  short  time,  we  advanced  in  a  northerly 
direction  to  the  east  of  the  island,  in  the  hope  of  reaching 
Gillis'  Land  from  thence.  But  after  sailing  in  a  fog  for  a 
whole  day  among  icebergs  lying  close  to  the  cliffs  of  the 
island,  we  were  driven  further  westward,  and  coming  suddenly 


58  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 

on  the  ice — Lat.  76°  30' — with  an  exceedingly  high  sea, 
escaped  being  dashed  to  pieces  as  by  a  miracle.  To  penetrate 
here  was  an  impossibility.  We  therefore  altered  our  course 
again  for  Walter-Thymen's  Straits.  A  dense  girdle  of  ice 
several  miles  deep,  and  a  strong  current  setting  towards  the 
south-west,  frustrated  every  attempt  to  land  on  Hope  Island. 
To  the  west  of  this  we  found  the  ice-barrier  in  76°  N.  Lat., 
formed  of  heavy  pack-ice,  and  small  icebergs.  Our  passage 
to  the  South  Cape  (Cape  Look-out)  of  Spitzbergen  (76°  30 
N.  Lat.)  was  comparatively  quick.  Numerous  cliffs  and  rocks 
on  which  the  waves  were  breaking,  not  marked  on  any  chart, 
rose  in  the  night  of  August  4  out  of  the  fog  at  the  distance 
of  a  few  ships'  lengths  from  us,  and  it  was  with  the  utmost 
difficulty  that  we  could  tack  with  the  heavy  sea  and  strong 
north-east  wind. 

ii.  The  day  after,  when  the  heavy  storm-clouds  lifted  from 
the  table-land  of  Cape  Look-out,  we  made  the  unpleasant 
discovery,  that  we  were  to  the  south-west  of  it.  Hitherto  we 
had  been  sailing  in  dense  fog,  but  after  passing  this  Cape  we 
had  almost  unbroken  sunshine,  which  illuminated  the  whole 
western  side  .of  Spitzbergen  up  to  Prince  Charles's  foreland. 
A  current  one  or  two  miles  wide,  which  flows  southward,  turns 
at  Cape  Look-out  and  flows  in  a  northerly  direction.  At  this 
Cape,  which  is  the  apex  of  the  current,  besides  many  rocks 
on  which  the  waves  break,  there  are  twenty  islands,  some  of 
them  of  considerable  size.  This  promontory,  which  has  been 
of  great  importance  to  navigators  for  more  than  200  years, 
is  erroneously  represented  in  the  charts  I  have  seen.  Many 
ships,  therefore,  have  been  wrecked  at  this  place,  chiefly  those  of 
the  Spitzbergen  whalers  and  sealers,  who  base  their  sailing  on 
making  this  headland,  though  they  are  ignorant  of  its  exact 
geographical  position.  Thrice  we  tried  at  the  beginning  of 
August  to  reach  the  Stor-Fiord  from  the  western  side  of  Cape 
Look-out,  and  thrice  we  were  driven  back  by  this  current, 
though  the  wind  was  in  our  favour.  This,  however,  gave  us  an 
opportunity  we  had  not  expected,  of  seeing  something  of  the 
west  coast  of  Spitzbergen  with  its  fiords  and  glaciers  as  far  as 
Horn  Sound.  A  fog,  as  dense  as  coal  smoke,  floats  almost 
always  over  "  Hornsundstind  "  (4,500  ft.  high)  and  the  pyramid 
of  Haytand.  The  slopes,  clothed  in  dull  green,  running  down 


PIONEER  VOYAGE  OF  THE  « ISBJORN."  59 

to  the  coast,  make  Spitzbergen  seem  scarcely  an  Arctic  land 
when  compared  with  the  cold  grandeur  of  Greenland.  The 
rocky  shores  of  the  northern  parts  of  Norway  are  more 
dreary,  and  wear  more  the  aspect  of  Arctic  regions  than 
Spitzbergen.  Hence  General  Sabine,  comparing  Spitzbergen 
with  Greenland,  called  it  "a  true  paradise." 

12.  On  the  loth  of  August   the   ice  began  to  move  out 
from  the  Stor-Fiord.     It  pushed  on  with  great  velocity  from 
the  north-east,  turned  round  Cape  Look-out,  and  deposited 
itself  along  the  west  coast,  covering  it  with  thick  layers  in 
sixteen  hours.     On  the  I2th  of  the  month,  in   consequence 
of  the  fog  and  strong  current,  we  found  ourselves  between 
the  heavy  drift-ice  and  the  reefs  of  Cape  Look-out.     Accord- 
ing to  our  reckoning  we  should  have  been  twenty-five  miles 
to  the  east  of  it.     It  was  only  by  boldly  charging  the  drift- 
ice,  with  the  vessel  under  full  sail,  that  the  Isbjorn  escaped 
the  danger  of  being  beset.     On  the  I3th  the  wind  chopped 
round,  and,  standing  away  to  the  south,  we  succeeded,  after 
cruising  about  for  ten  days,  in  running  into  Wyde-Jans  Water. 
Our  involuntary  detention  off  Cape  Look-out  enabled  us  to 
land  twice.     During  one  of  these  visits  we  built  a  cairn,  in 
which  we  deposited  a  notice  of  the  course  we  had  steered. 
The  hasty  survey  we  made  enabled  us  to  correct  some  very 
gross  errors  in  the  maps.     On  the  evening  of  the  I4th  we 
sighted  Edge  Island,  and  cruised  in  the  drift-ice,  which  was 
becoming  gradually  more  dense  in  that  direction.     Here  we 
fell  in  with  two  ships  from  Finland,  engaged  in  the  capture  of 
the  walrus,  and  learnt  from  their  skippers  some  particulars 
concerning  the  state  of  the  ice,  which  induced  us  to  give  up 
the  direct  course  to  Cape  Leigh-Smith,  and  to  prefer  coasting 
along  the  west  side  of  the  Fiord. 

13.  The  ice  was  now  more  packed.     The  ship,  weakened 
by  numerous  ice-pressures  and  countless  shocks,  and  making 
much  water,  was  in  so  bad  a  condition,  that  part  of  the  bows 
under  the  water-line  was  shattered,  and  some  timbers  of  the 
hull  were  forced  in.     In  order  to  give  some  notion  of  the  force 
of  the  shocks  to  which  we  had  been  exposed  in  forcing  our 
course  through  the  ice,  let  it  suffice  to  say,  that  the  iron  plating 
an  inch  thick,  with  which  the  bows  had  been  strengthened  at 
Tromsoe,  had  been  broken  off  like  so  many  chips. 


60  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 

14.  Tacking  up  against  the  north  wind  we  came,  in  the 
night  of  August  1 6,  on  broken  ice  off  Whale's  Bay,  in  77°  30' 
N.  Lat.    The  expected  free  coast-water  was  not  to  be  found, 
reaching  Cape  Leigh-Smith  in  less  than  a  week.     Our  plan  of 
and  the  prevailing  winds  from  the  north  took  .away  any  hope 
of  a  boat  expedition,  for  which  three  weeks  would  have  been 
necessary,  from  Cape  Leigh-Smith   to  explore  Gillis'  Land, 
had   now  to   be   renounced  ;  and  as  the  southern  extremity 
of  Stor- Fiord  is  generally  blocked  up  at  the  end  of  August 
by  an  accumulation  of  ice  brought  from  the  east,  we  were 
constrained  to   leave   the   fiord   at  once,  and  return    to  the 
ice-barrier  we  had  left. 

15.  The  geological  formation  of  the  western  coast  of  this 
fiord  has  never  been  explored.     From  a  visit  to  the  land  and 
the  ascent   of  a   mountain   2,ooo  feet  high,  we  learnt  some 
interesting   facts   concerning    its    Jurassic    formation,    which 
appeared  to  extend  far  to  the  south.     We  found  traces,  at 
some   distance   apart,  of  the   more   recent  brown  coal,  and 
fossil    remains     (Bivalves    in    ferruginous    chalk-marl) ;    we 
gathered  also  some  plants  still  in  flower,  and  brought  away 
some  red  snow.     This  excursion  enabled  us  also  to  examine 
the    beautifully-developed    glaciers    of    Spitzbergen.     Horn- 
sundstind  (4,500  feet  high)  is  a  most  imposing  mountain,  and 
viewed    from   the   east   resembles    a    sugar-loaf.     The   other 
mountains  on  the  coast  of  the  fiord  rise  to  heights  varying 
from   2,000  to  4,000  feet.     Noble  glaciers  slope   down  both 
sides  of  the  main  ridge,  which  runs  in  a  southerly  direction 
through  the  island.     Some  of  these,  when  they  reach  the  sea, 
are  three  or  four  miles  wide,  and  their  terminal  fronts  are 
about  80  feet  high.     The  snow-line  of  those  which  debouch 
on  the  Stor- Fiord  is  at  an  altitude  of  1,000  feet,  and  their 
surface  is  little  broken  by  crevasses.     None  of  these  glaciers 
are   of  sufficient   size    to   shed   icebergs,   properly   speaking. 
The    sea   close   to   the   coast    is    shallow,    and    the    detach- 
ments from  the  glaciers  are  merely  larger  or  smaller  blocks 
of  ice. 

1 6.  On  the  evening  of  August  16,  sailing  before  the  wind, 
we  forced  our  way  through  the  ice  of  the  Stor- Fiord,  and  two 
days  afterwards  arrived  at  Hope  Island,  the  steep,  rocky  walls 
of  which  rose  out  of  the  fog  just  as  we  were  close  under  it. 


PIONEER  VOYAGE  OF  THE  "  ISBJORN."  61 

We  found  the  icebergs  still  firmly  grounded,  precisely  as  we 
had  observed  them  three  weeks  before.  As  an  unusually 
strong  current  was  running  towards  the  south-west  at  the  rate 
of  two  miles  an  hour,  great  caution  was  needed  when  we 
landed  in  the  whale-boat  amid  rocks  and  cliffs  not  marked 
on  any  chart.  The  geological  formation  of  the  island  was 
identical  with  that  of  the  mountainous  region  on  the  south  of 
Whale's  Bay.  We  found  brown  coal,  but  the  shortness  of  our 
visit  did  not  permit  us  to  inspect  the  beds  of  it.  Drift-wood 
of  Siberian  larch  and  pine  lay  in  great  quantities  on  the 
shore. 

17.  It  was  surprising  to  observe  the  change  which  mean- 
while had  taken  place ;  the  ice  both  to  the  west  and  east  of 
us  had  disappeared.  We  were  eager  to  find  it,  and  again 
penetrated  as  far  as  possible  into  it.  We  tacked  about  on 
the  I  Qth,  20th,  and  2ist  of  August — the  weather  being  stormy 
— with  little  success  against  the  north  wind,  which  had 
prevailed  for  some  weeks.  A  current  from  the  north  drove 
us  constantly  southwards.  After  leaving  the  Stor-Fiord  the 
temperature  of  the  water  exceeded  the  temperature  of  the 
air.  On  the  22nd  of  August,  in  76°  45'  N.  Lat.  and  28°  30' 
E.  Long,  we  found  very  little  drift-ice,  which  standing  out  but 
a  few  inches  above  the  water-level  presented  no  impediment 
to  navigation.  Nothing  but  contrary  winds  stood  in  the  way 
of  our  penetrating  in  a  northerly  direction,  except,  indeed, 
the  doubts  and  fears  raised  by  our  skipper  and  his  crew  at 
our  attempting  higher  latitudes  at  so  late  a  period  of  the 
year.  Konig  Karl's  Land  lay  only  forty  miles  to  the  north — 
still  invisible  on  account  of  the  mists.  Fresh  traces  of  Polar 
bears  announced  the  neighbourhood  of  land.  WTe  therefore 
bore  away  to  the  east  in  32°  E.  Long,  on  the  24th  of  August 
^-the  day  on  which  the  sun  set  for  the  first  time.  The  num- 
ber of  icebergs  constantly  increased  from  this  date,  while  some 
weeks  previously,  in  the  same  region,  we  had  scarcely  seen 
one.  This,  perhaps,  is  to  be  explained  from  the  fact,  that 
their  appearance  is  irregular,  depending  on  the  varying  move- 
ment of  the"  glaciers,  and  also  on  the  time  £nd  manner  in 
which  the  icebergs  clear  out  from  the  bays  and  fiords.  On 
the  26th  we  had  stormy  weather,  rain,  and  snow.  On  the 
27th,  amid  a  dense  fog,  and  with  the  sea  running  high,  we  came 


62  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 

close  to  an  iceberg,  against  which  the  sea  was  dashing  itself 
in  foam  and  spray,  just  in  time  to  avert  a  collision.  On  the 
29th  of  August  we  perceived  that  the  ship  had  been  carried 
i°  30'  eastward  in  a  short  time  by  a  current.  The  further  we 
sailed  in  this  easterly  direction,  the  further  northward  the  ice 
retreated,  and  we  began  to  hope  that  we  should  come  nearer 
the  Pole  than  any  ship  ever  had  in  this  sea.  The  southern 
limit  of  the  ice-barrier  in  the  Novaya  Zemlya  seas,  towards 
the  end  of  summer,  is  usually  placed  at  76°  N.  Lat.,  but  we 
had  reached  78°  N.  Lat.,  with  42°  E.  Long.,  without  seeing 
(August  3Oth)  a  fragment  of  ice.  The  Isbjorn  had,  therefore, 
penetrated  100  miles  in  seas  hitherto  unknown.  There  was 
still  a  long  heavy  swell  from  the  north,  but  the  temperature  .of 
the  water  had  fallen  4J°  within  twenty-four  hours,  and  it  was 
no  longer  of  an  ultramarine,  but  of  a  dirty  green  colour ;  so 
that,  notwithstanding  the  sanguine  expectations  we  had 
cherished,  we  expected  every  moment  to  come  on  pack-ice. 
Already,  too,  the  "  ice-blink  "  was  visible  here  and  there  on 
the  horizon. 

1 8.  Whales,  secure  from  persecution  in  this  remote  sea, 
seemed  to  abound  ;  we  saw  many  "  blowing "  and  spouting. 
They  came  sometimes  in  pairs  close  to  the  ship.  Their  chase 
and  capture  might  have  been  carried  on  here  with  every  hope 
of  success.  On  the  morning  of  the  $ist  of  August  we  saw 
six  Eider-geese,  the  precursors,  of  near  land.  A  blue  shadow 
on  the  eastern  sky  arrested  the  attention  of  us  all  for  a  long 
time.  We  felt  as  if  we  were  on  the  brink  of  great  discoveries. 
But,  alas !  the  supposed  land  dissolved  into  mist.  The  poverty 
of  our  equipment  prevented  us  from  penetrating  further. 
We  might  easily  have  been  driven  onwards  by  unknown 
currents,  and  the  ice  closing  behind  us  might  have  cut  off 
return  to  Europe.  We  could  not  be  assured  that  we  had  not 
come  upon  a  bight,  or  cul-de-sac,  stretching  far  to  the  north, 
and  which  might  quickly  change  its  character.  On  the  night 
of  August  31,  in  78°  N.  Lat,  the  ice  lay  in  some  places  loose 
and  widely  dispersed,  in  others  it  was  more  compact,  but 
nowhere  was  it  in  great  masses ;  it  scarcely  rose  above  the 
horizon,  and  it  was  entirely  without  icebergs.  There  was 
nothing  to  prevent  a  vessel  with  steam  power  from  penetrat- 
ing further. 


PIONEER  VOYAGE  OF  THE  "  ISBJORN."  63 

19.  Still  following  the  ice-barrier  as  it  retreated  northwards, 
we  passed  beyond  78°  30'  N.  Lat.  in  the  night  of  August  31. 
The  influence  of  the  high  latitudes  we  had  reached,  on  the 
duration  of  light,  was  unmistakable.    For  some  days,  however, 
the  temperature  had  fallen  below  32°  F.,a  coating  of  snow  lay 
on  the  deck,  and  the  rigging  was  covered  with  ice  like*  glass. 
The  morning  of  the   1st  of   September  broke ;  about  half- 
past  three  o'clock  fresh  breezes  from  the  north  drove  off  the 
mist,  and  revealed  one  of  those  pictures  peculiar  to  the  high 
north  from  its  dazzling  effects  of  colour — the  beams  of  the 
sun  in  glowing  splendour  were  piercing  through  heavy  masses 
of  clouds,  while  the  moon  shone  oil  the  opposite  side  of  the 
heavens.      An  ice-blink  resembling  an  Aurora   lay  on   the 
north. 

20.  We  had  reached  78°  38'  N.  Lat.,  and  yet  the  ice  around 
us  presented  no  serious  impediment — none  at  least  as  far  as 
we  could  see.     Should  we  then  venture  further  with  our  ship 
in  its  weakened   condition  ?     We  might  still   follow   up   an 
opening  within  the  ice  running  northward,  though,  in  doing 
this,  we  should  expend  the  time  needed  for  the  exploration  of 
the   eastward-lying  Novaya  Zemlya  seas.      We  determined 
therefore  to  bear  away  to  the  east  before  some  currents  of 
loose  drift-ice.     But  fog  and  a  high  sea  from  the  north-west 
caused  us  to  alter  our  course  more  and  more  to  the  south-east. 
For  the  first  time  in  these  high  latitudes  we  observed  drift- 
wood, and  we  found  ourselves  in  a  sea,  the  temperature  of 
which   at  the    surface  did   not  materially  exceed   the   tem- 
perature of  the  air.     Whenever,  however,  the  temperature  of 
the  air  rose,  a  thaw  suddenly  set  in.     The  colour  of  the  sea 
alternated   between    blue    and   a   dull   green.      A  few  days 
previously  we  had  passed  over  a  sea  extraordinarily  rich  in 
.the  ribbed  Medusae  (Beroe),  and  where  the  Rorqual  (whale) 
abounded. 

21.  The  great  question  now  arose,  whether  the  open  water 
found  in  these  high  latitudes  were  only  an  accidental  bight  in 
the  ice  or  a  connected  sea.     It  seemed   bold  to  assume  the 
latter,  since  76°  30'  N.  Lat.  had  never  before  been  passed  in 
that  region.     In  order,  therefore,  to  arrive  at  some  positive 
conclusion  on  this  point,  we  stood  away  from  the  ice  at  noon 
of  the   ist  of  September,  and  ran  down  in  open  water  to 


64  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 

75°  52'  N.  Lat.  and  51°  44'  E.  Long.,  intending  to  return  to 
the  north  again,  in  order  to  explore  the  state  of  the  ice 
to  the  north-east.  Overcoming  with  much  difficulty  the 
opposition  of  our  skipper,  we  returned  to  the  edge  of  the  ice, 
which  we  found,  September  5th,  in  78°  5'  N.  Lat  and  56°  E. 
Long.  Though  there  was  not  much  wind,  a  high  sea  running 
on  the  ice  compelled  us  to  leave  it.  In  our  course  to  the 
south-east  we  crossed  77°  30'  N.  Lat.  and  59°  E.  Long. ;  here, 
also,  to  the  south  of  78°,  there  was  no  ice.  To  penetrate 
further  to  the  east  formed  no  part  of  our  plan,  and  since 
another  attempt  to  return  to  the  ice  would  have  been  object- 
less, fgr  the  reasons  above  stated,  we  proposed  to  run  into  a 
bight  on  the  west  coast  of  Novaya  Zemlya  to  take  in  fuel  and 
water,  which  we  urgently  needed.  The  longer  nights  now 
made  it  almost  impossible  to  manoeuvre  a  ship  in  the  ice 
when  the  winds  were  high,  though  a  good  steamer  might  have 
persisted  for  some  time  longer.  The  temperature  of  the  sea 
on  the  5th  of  September  was  39°  F.  in  Lat.  77°  30',  and  on 
the  8th  of  the  month,  when  we  were  in  sight  of  Cape  Nassau, 
it  reached  41°  F. 

22.  Storms  compelled  us  to  keep  to  sea.  As  a  current 
constantly  set  us  to  the  north-east,  we  found  it  not  possible 
to  land  on  Novaya  Zemlya,  scarcely  even  to  see  it.  On  the 
night  of  September  I2th  we  came. into  the  region  where  the 
equatorial  and  Polar  air-currents  meet,  and  had  an  opportunity 
of  observing  the  hurricane-like  effects  of  their  conjunction. 
The  barometer  fell  about  two  inches,  and  the  sea  was  so 
broken  that  the  ship  could  hardly  be  steered,  even  with  a  fresh 
wind.  On  September  I4th  we  were  off  Matoschkin  Schar, 
and  could  not  anchor,  a  snow-storm  from  the  north-east  com- 
pletely hiding  the  coast.  The  change,  which  meantime  had 
taken  place  in  the  sky,  was  strange  and  remarkable.  Heavy 
thunder-clouds  lay  over  our  heads,  just  as  they  do  in  the 
region  of  the  trade-winds,  and  every  moment  threatened  to 
discharge  themselves.  On  the  I3th  of  September  we  saw  the 
first  Aurora,  in  the  shape  of  an  arch,  passing  through  our 
zenith.  The  want  of  fuel  and  water,  from  which  we  began  to 
suffer,  and  the  end  of  the  season  for  navigation,  compelled  us 
to  avail  ourselves  of  the  favourable  wind  which  had  set  in, 
and  begin  our  voyage  home,  without  landing  on  Novaya 


PIONEER  VOYAGE  OF  THE  "ISBJORN."  65 

Zemlya.  On  this  same  day  three  of  our  crew  of  seven  men 
fell  ill,  one  of  them  with  scurvy.  A  heavy  storm  from  the 
north-east  compelling  us  to  heave  to,  we  lay  close  under  the 
coast  of  Lapland  for  a  whole  day.  On  the  2Oth  of  September 
we  ran  into  Tana  Fiord  on  the  east  of  North  Cape,  the  most 
northerly  point  of  Europe,  and  took  in  water.  The  gloomy 
cliffs  of  Tanahorn  and  the  rocky  iron-bound  coasts  were  not 
at  all  behind  the  lands  we  had  left  in  their  terrible  desolation. 
On  the  24th  of  August  the  Isbjorn  passed  North  Cape  ;  on  the 
4th  of  October  she  anchored  in  Tromsoe.  Weyprecht  had 
remained  on  board  while,  with  a  Lapland  sailor  who  could 
speak  Norwegian,  I  left  the  ship  in  Tana  Fiord  and  went  on 
to  Tromsoe  through  Lapland,  sometimes  by  means  of  a 
small  boat  on  the  shallow  rivers  and  sometimes  by  means  of 
reindeer  sledges. 

23.  It  had  formed  no  part  of  our  plan,  either  to  make 
discoveries,  or  to  reach  high  latitudes.  Our  object  was  to 
investigate  whether  the  Novaya  Zemlya  seas  offered  greater 
facilities,  either  from  the  influence  of  the  Gulf  Stream,  or 
from  any  other  causes,  for  penetrating  the  unexplored  Polar 
regions.  Many  arguments,  derived  from  the  scientific  results 
of  our  voyage,  would  seem  to  favour  this  idea,  and  in  con- 
tradiction to  the  discouraging  views  of  our  predecessors, 
whose  failures  are  explained  by  their  defective  equipment  and 
the  choice  of  the  most  unfavourable  season  for  navigation,  we 
ventured  to  draw  the  following  inferences : 

(i.)  The  Novaya  Zemlya  Sea  is  not  filled  with  impenetrable 
ice,  rendering  navigation  impossible  ;  on  the  contrary,  it  is 
open  every  year,  probably  up  to  78°  of  N.  Lat.,  and  is  con- 
nected with  the  Sea  of  Kara,  which  is  also  free  from  ice  in 
autumn,  and  even,  it  may  be,  with  the  "  Polynjii,"  in  the 
North  of  Asia.  If  this  inference  should  not  be  admitted,  the 
following  remarks  of  Lieutenant  Weyprecht,  in  anticipation  of 
objections,  are  put  forward  as  worthy  of  consideration  : — "  In 
all  probability  the  open  condition  of  the  ice  in  1871  will  be 
ascribed  to  chance,  or  to  an  especially  favourable  ice-year. 
With  respect  to  the  latter  alternative,  the  accounts  given  by 
the  walrus-hunters  of  Spitzbergen  and  Novaya  Zemlya 
should  convince  us,  that  the  year  1871  was  not  only  not  a 
favourable,  but  a  most  unfavourable  year  in  the  ice.  It  was 


66  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 

almost  impossible  to  navigate  Wyde-Jans  Water,  and  the  Sea 
of  Kara  could  only  be  reached  through  the  most  southerly 
straits — the  Jugorsky  Straits.  There  remains,  therefore,  only 
the  other  objection,  that  the  accident  of  favourable  winds  was 
the  cause  of  our  penetrating  so  far.  But  our  meteorological 
journal  shows  North,  or  at  any  rate  Northerly  winds,  and 
often,  too,  blowing  freshly,  from  August  4th  to  September  5th, 
with  the  exception  of  twelve  watches,  i.e.  two  days.  But  in 
no  case  could  these  winds  have  driven  the  ice  to  the  north. 
With  respect  to  the  loose  character  of  the  ice  we  encountered, 
it  might  be  said,  that  we  saw  only  the  outer  ice.  But,  in  the 
first  place,  we  were  often  so  far  within  the  barrier  that  it 
would  be  inadmissible  to  speak  of  it  as  the  outer  ice  ;  and,  in 
the  second  place,  the  ice-barrier  shows  the  state  of  the  ice 
behind  it.  Whenever  the  wind  lies  against  the  ice,  there  the 
ice  is  always  the  most  dense  and  packed,  and  we  find  open 
places  only  when  we  have  worked  our  way  through  the  outer 
ice." 

(2.)  The  time  most  favourable  for  navigation  in  this  sea 
falls  at  the  end  of  August,  and  lasts — though  rendered 
hazardous  by  storms,  the  formation  of  young  ice,  and  the 
darkness  which  supervenes  at  that  season — till  the  end  of 
September,  and  during  this  period  the  ice  may  be  said  to  be 
at  its  minimum. 

(3.)  The  Novaya  Zemlya  Sea  is  a  shallow  sea — a  connection 
and  continuation-  of  the  great  plains  of  Siberia.  In  the 
extreme  north,  its  depth  was  600  feet,  and  south-east  of  Gillis' 
Land  about  300  feet. 

(4.)  Gillis'  Land  is  not  a  continent,  but  either  an  island  or 
a  group  of  islands.  Whereas,  from  the  circumstance  that  in 
the  highest  latitudes — in  79°  N.  Lat. — we  found  drift-wood 
covered  with  mud,  sea-weed,  creatures  which  live  only  near 
the  land,  decreasing  depths  of  the  sea,  sweet-water  ice  and 
icebergs  laden  with  dirt,  it  may  be  inferred,  with  great  prob- 
ability, that  there  exist  masses  of  land  to  the  north-east  of 
Gillis'  Land. 

(5.)  The  appearance  of  Siberian  drift-wood,  only  in  the 
most  northern  seas  reached  in  our  voyage,  seems  to  point  to 
an  easterly  current  there. 

(6.)    The   Russian   expeditions   in   the   past   and    present 


PIONEER  VOYAGE  OF  THE  "  ISBJORN."  67 

centuries,  which  attempted  to  penetrate  by  the  north-west 
coast  of  Novaya  Zemlya,  miscarried,  because  they  sailed 
before  the  favourable  season  for  navigation,  and  also  because 
they  had  not  the  advantage  of  steam. 

(7.)  How  far  the  Gulf  Stream  has  any  share  or  influence  in 
the  favourable  conditions  for  the  navigation  of  the  Eastern 
Polar  Sea  which  have  been  described,  cannot  as  yet  be 
positively  determined.  The  state  of  the  ice,  the  observations 
which  were  made  on  the  temperature  of  the  sea,  its  colour 
and  the  animal  life  found  in  it,  seem  to  speak  in  favour  of  the 
action  of  this  current  in  that  region.  It  is  possible  that  the 
Gulf  Stream  may  exercise  its  culminating  influence  on  the 
west  coast  of  Novaya  Zemlya  only  at  the  beginning  of 
September ;  for  while  the  temperature  of  the  sea  in  the 
months  of  July  and  August  gradually  fell  from  45°  F.  to  36° 
F.  in  Lat.  75°  N.,  and  to  zero  and  below  it,  still  more  to  the 
north,  we  observed  39°  F.,  September  6,  in  Lat.  78°,  and  41° 
F.,  September  10,  in  Lat.  75°  30'.  The  temperature  of  the 
air  was  in  all  these  cases  considerably  less  than  that  of  the 
water.  If  the  unusually  favourable  state  of  the  ice  on  the 
east  of  Spitzbergen  should  be  ascribed  to  warm  southerly 
currents  of  air,  it  may  be  replied  that  our  observations  specify 
the  almost  uninterrupted  occurrence  of  north  winds.  It  is 
also  possible,  that  at  the  beginning  and  middle  of  summer 
the  Gulf  Stream  may  move  slowly  in  a  northerly  direction 
along  the  coasts  of  Novaya  Zemlya,  and  that  towards  autumn 
it  spreads  itself  more  and  more  to  the  west.  Our  observations 
proved  the  existence,  in  the  eastern  Novaya  Zemlya  seas,  of  a 
band  of  warm  water,  from  thirty-six  to  forty  feet  deep, 
beneath  which  lies,  without  gradation,  a  colder  stratum.  It  is  • 
evident  that  the  unequal  density  of  these  strata  prevents 
their  mingling.  This  band  of  warmer  water  near  North  Cape 
is  about  150  feet  deep,  with  a  temperature  of  nearly  45°  F., 
but  diminishes  as  it  flows  northward.  The  frequency  of  fogs 
and  mists  in  the  Novaya  Zemlya  Sea,  and  the  squalls  un- 
known to  other  Arctic  regions,  which  are  characteristic  of  a 
more  southerly  region,  indicate  also  a  current  of  warm  water. 
How  this  warm  current  gradually  cools  towards  the  north, 
and  becomes  shallower,  and  how  distinctly  it  divides  into 
those  strata  of  water  of  equal  temperature,  so  characteristic 


68 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


of  the  Gulf  Stream,  is  shown  by  three  series  of  observations 
taken  by  Weyprecht  at  different  latitudes,  with  the  maximum 
and  minimum  thermometer  of  Casella: — 


72°3o'lat.,  44°  long. 

77°  26'  lat,  44°  long. 

76°  40'  lat.,  55°  long. 

12  to  114'  +  4-8°  C. 

6'  to  30'  +  2-2°C. 

6'  to  39  +  2-5°  C. 

144  +  2-5 

36  +r8 

48  +  i-o 

174    +2'0 

45    +  0-3 

60  —  cro 

204  +  i  -5 

60  +  0*3 

72  -  0-6 

234  +  1-3 

75  -  0-9 

90   —  o-6 

264  +  i'o 

90  —  o'8 

120   -  1-3 

294  +0-5 

120    —  I'6 

180  -  1-2 

360  +0-5 

180  -  1-8 

300  —  1-2 

450  +0-0 

360  —  i  '6 

600  —  0'4 

800  -  1-3 

24.  These  inferences  rendered  the  despatch  of  a  well- 
equipped  expedition  to  the  Novaya  Zemlya  seas  very  desir- 
able, either  to  penetrate  towards  the  north,  or  to  pursue  the 
direction  of  the  north-east  passage.  To  this  idea  a  most 
gracious  reception  was  given  by  the  Emperor  of  Austria. 
Hence  arose  the  Austro-Hungarian  expedition  of  1872.  The 
promoters  of  this  undertaking  assumed  neither  the  existence 
of  an  open  Polar  Sea,  nor  the  possibility  of  reaching  the  Pole 
by  sledge  or  boat  expeditions.  Their  object,  simply  and 
broadly  stated,  was  the  exploration  of  the  still  unknown 
Arctic  regions,  and  it  was  their  belief,  that  a  vessel  could 
penetrate  further  into  this  region  by  the  route  between 
Novaya  Zemlya  and  Spitzbergen,  where  the  Isbjorn  in  her 
pioneer  voyage  found  the  ice  more  loose  and  navigable  than 
had  been  imagined  possible.  But  in  addition  to  the  causes 
already  specified,  the  influence  of  the  warm  currents,  pro- 
duced by  the  great  rivers  of  Siberia  discharging  themselves 
into  a  shallow  sea,  was  also  supposed  to  Go-operate  in  pro- 
ducing this  phenomenon.  Of  these  rivers,  the  Obi  and  Jenisej 
alone  discharge  into  that  shallow  sea  a  body  of  water  as  great 
as  the  waters  of  the  Mediterranean  or  the  waters  of  the 
Mississippi.  The  course  of  the  current  produced  by  these 
mighty  rivers  is  "as  yet  unknown  ;  but  it  was  natural  to 
suppose,  that  old  and  heavy  pack-ice  could  not  be  formed  on 
a  coast  submitted  to  such  an  influence.  This  is  confirmed  by 
the  observations  of  the  Russians,  who  in  the  coldest  period  of 


PIONEER  VOYAGE  OF  THE  "  ISBJORN."  69 

the  year  always  find  open  water  in  the  Siberian  seas.  Mid- 
dendorf,  August  26,  1844,  found  the  Gulf  of  Taimyr  quite 
free  from  ice  ;  our  own  observations,  made  in  60°  E.  Long.,  and 
those  of  the  Norwegian  Mack,  who  advanced  to  81°  E.  Long. 
(75°  45 '  N.  Lat),  support  the  supposition  of  a  still  navigable 
sea.  Of  the  region  between  Cape  Tscheljuskin  and  the  ice- 
free  spaces  asserted  to  exist  by  Wrangel,  and  others,  we  know 
but  little  ;  but  it  is  probable  that  the  character  of  the  ice  in 
those  seas  does  not  greatly  differ  from  the  character  of  the  ice 
in  contiguous  seas.  Of  the  seas  between  Novaya  Zemlya  and 
Behring's  Straits,  at  the  distance  of  a  few  miles  from  the 
Asiatic  coast,  nothing  is  known.  No  ship  has  ever  navigated 
this  enormous  Eastern  Polar  Sea. 

25.  It  was  the  plan  of  the  Austro-Hungarian  expedition  to 
penetrate  in  an  E.N.E.  direction,  in  the  latter  half  of  August, 
when  the  north  coast  of  Novaya  Zemlya  is  generally  free 
from  ice.  The  places  at  which  the  expedition  was  to  winter 
were  left  undetermined ;  these  might,  possibly,  be  Cape 
Tscheljuskin,  the  new  Siberian  islands,  or  any  lands  which 
might  be  discovered.  A  return  to  Europe  through  Behring's 
Straits,  however  improbable  it  might  be,  lay  among  the  possi- 
bilities of  the  venture.  Minor  details  were  left  to  circum- 
stances. In  the  event  of  the  loss  of  the  ship,  the  expedition 
was  to  endeavour  to  reach  the  coast  of  Siberia  by  boats,  and, 
on  one  of  the  gigantic  water-courses  of  Northern  Asia,  pene- 
trate into  more  southern  regions.  The  depot  of  provisions 
and  coals  which  it  was  Graf  Wilczek's  intention  to  deposit  on 
the  north  coast  of  Novaya  Zemlya,  was  to  be  the  nearest 
refuge  for  the  crew  in  the  event  of  disaster  to  the  ship.  Stone 
cairns  were  to  be  erected  on  all  prominent  localities,  and  in 
these  were  to  be  laid  accounts  of  the  course  of  the  expedition. 
Till  its  return  at  the  end  of  the  autumn  of  1874,  its  members 
were  to  be  cut  off  from  all  intercourse  with  Europe.  The 
motives  of  an  undertaking  so  long  and  so  laborious  cannot  be 
found  in  the  mere  love  of  distinction  or  of  adventure.  Next 
to  the  wish  to  serve  the  interests  of  science  by  going  beyond 
the  footsteps  of  our  predecessors,  we  were  influenced  by  the 
duty  of  confirming  and  fulfilling  the  hopes  which  we  ourselves 
had  excited. 


VOYAGE    OF   THE    " TEGETTHOFF." 

JUNE,  1872— SEPTEMBER,  1874. 


I. 

FROM   BREMERHAVEN   TO   KAISER   FRANZ- 
JOSEF  LAND. 


CHAPTER  I. 

FROM  BREMERHAVEN  TO  TROMSOE. 

I.  HE  who  seeks  to  penetrate  the  recesses  of  the  Polar  world 
chooses  a  path  beset  with  toils  and  dangers.  The  explorer  of 
that  region  has  to  devote  every  energy  of  mind  and  body  to 
extort  a  slender  fragment  of  knowledge  from  the  silence  and 
mystery  of  the  realm  of  ice.  He  must  be  prepared  to  con- 
front disappointments  and  disasters  with  inexhaustible  patience, 
and  pursue  devotedly  his  object,  even  when  he  himself  becomes 
the  sport  of  accident.  That  object  must  not  be  the  admiration 
of  men,  but  the  extension  of  the  domain  of  knowledge.  He 
spends  long  years  in  the  most  dreadful  of  all  banishments, 
far  from  his  friends,  from  all  the  enjoyments  of  life,  surrounded 
by  manifold  perils,  and  bearing  the  burden  of  utter  loneliness. 
The  grandeur  therefore  of  his  object  can  alone  support  him, — 
for  otherwise  the  dreary  void  of  things  without  can  only  be 
an  image  of  the  void  within.  How  many  are  the  preconcep- 
tions with  which  the  novice  begins  the  voyage  to  the  rugged, 
inclement  north !  Books  can  tell  him  little  of  the  stern  life 
to  which  he  dooms  himself,  as  soon  as  he  crosses  the  threshold 
of  the  ice,  thinking  perhaps  to  measure  the  evils  that  await 
him  by  the  physical  miseries  of  cold  instead  of  by  the  moral 
deprivations  in  store  for  him. 

2.  In  the  year  1868,  while  employed  on  the  survey  of  the 
Orteler  Alps,  a  newspaper  with  an  account  of  Koldewey's 
first  expedition  one  day  found  its  way  into  my  tent  on  the 
mountain  side.  In  the  evening  I  held  forth  on  the  North 
Pole  to  the  herdsmen  and  Jdgers  of  my  party  as  we  sat 
round  the  fire,  no  one  more  filled  with  astonishment  than 
myself,  that  there  should  be  men  endued  with  such  capacity 


74  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  CHAP. 

to  endure  cold  and  darkness.  No  presentiment  had  I  then 
that  the  very  next  year  I  should  myself  have  joined  an 
expedition  to  the  North  Pole  ;  and  as  little  could  Haller,  one 
of  my  Jdgcrs  at  that  time,  foresee  that  he  would  accompany 
me  on  my  third  expedition.  And  much  the  same  was  it  with 
the  three-and-twenty  men  who  early  in  the  morning  of  June 
13,  1872,  came  on  board  the  vessel  in  Bremerhaven,  to  cast 
in  their  lot  with  the  ship  Tegetthoff,  whatever  that  lot  might  be  ; 
for  we  had  all  bound  ourselves  by  a  formal  deed,  renouncing 
every  claim  to  an  expedition  for  our  rescue,  in  case  we  should 
be  unable  to  return.  Our  ideal  aim  was  the  north-east  passage, 
our  immediate  and  definite  object  was  the  exploration  of  the 
seas  and  lands  on  the  north-east  of  Novaya  Zemlya. 

3.  A  bright  day  rose  with  us,  and   no  augur's  voice  could 
have  heightened  the  glad  hopes  which  animated  every  one  of 
us.     Friends  from  Austria  and  Germany  had  come  to  bid  us  a 
last  farewell  ;  but,  as  every  venture  should  be,  so  our  departure 
that  morning  was,  quiet  and  without  pretension.     About  six 
o'clock  in  the  morning  the   Tegetthoff  lifted  her  anchor  and 
dropped    down  the    Schleusen  and  the  Weser,   towed  by  a 
steamer.     Down  the  broad  stream  we  calmly  glided,  full  of 
satisfaction  at  the  fulfilment  of  long-cherished  plans.     There 
lay  the  same  pastures,  the  same  trees  and   meadows  which 
had  so  delighted  us  on  our  return  from  Greenland.     Yet  un- 
moved we  saw  all  the  charms  of  nature  grow  young  under  the 
morning  sun  and  then  fade  away  in  the  evening  twilight — as 
the  land  gradually  disappeared  behind  us,  and  the  coasts  of 
Germany  were  lost  to  view.     With  the  feeling  that  we  were 
leaving  them  for  so  long  a  time,  our  thoughts  turned  to  our 
new  life  in  the  narrow  limits  of  a  ship,  and  the  resolve  to  live 
and  labour  in  harmony  animated  each  breast.     How  often  we 
should  be  liable  to  casualties  which  no  eye  could  foresee,  we 
were  soon  to  find  out,  when  in  almost  dead  calVn  and  without 
steam  we  came  on  the  shallow  waters  of  Heligoland.     What 
would  have  become  of  the  expedition,  had  we  not  discovered 
in  time,  that  we  had  only  a  fevv  feet  of  water  under  the  keel ! 

4.  The  vessel,  220  tons  burden,  was  fitted  out  for  two  years 
and  a  half,  but  was  over-freighted   by  about  thirty  tons,  so 
that  our  available  space  was  much  curtailed.     Yet  the  cabin, 
which  Weyprecht,  Brosch,  Orel,  Kepes,  Krisch,  and  I  occupied,. 


I.]  FROM  BREMERHAVEN  TO  TROMSOE.  75 

was  far  more  commodious  than  the  miserable  hole  in  which 
eight  of  us  had  been  crowded  together  on  our  Greenland 
expedition.  Our  supply  of  coals,  130  tons,  was  large  in  pro- 
portion to  the  size  of  the  ship,  being  calculated  not  only  for 
our  daily  wants,  but  to  enable  us  to  keep  up  steam  for  about 
sixty  days.  But  to  economise  this  store  we  used  our  sails,  as 
much  as  possible,  even  in  the  ice.  Both  ship  and  engine — of 
100  horse  power — tested  in  the  trial  trip  of  June  8,  sustained 
their  character  during  the  expedition,  and  did  great  credit  to 
the  Tecklenborg  firm. 

5.  The  wind  being  unfavourable,  it  took  us  some  time  to 
cross  the  North  Sea  and  reach  the  coast  of  Norway.  My 
journal  describes  this  part  of  our  voyage.  "Light  winds  from 
the  south  carried  the  Tegetthoff  on  her  lonely  course  over  the 
North  Sea.  In  undimmed  brightness  the  blue  sky  stretched 
overhead,  the  air  was  balmy  and  mild.  In  the  grey  distance 
frowns  the  iron  rampart  of  countless  cliffs  encircling  the 
barren  wastes  of  Norway.  Occasionally  a  sea-gull  comes  near 
us,  or  some  bird  rests  on  the  mast-head  ;  now  and  then  a  sail 
is  seen  on  the  horizon, — but  save  this,  no  life — no  event. 
Every  one  feels,  though  no  one  utters  it,  that  a  grave  future 
lies  before  him  ;  each  may  hope  what  he  wishes,  for  over  the 
future  there  is  drawn  an  impenetrable  veil.  All,  however,  are 
animated  with  the  consciousness,  that  while  serving  science,  we 
are  also  serving  our  Fatherland,  and  that  all  our  doings  will 
be  watched  at  home  with  the  liveliest  sympathy. 

"  6.  On  board  the  Tegetthoff  are  heard  all  the  languages  of 
our  country,  German,  Italian,.  Slavonic,  and  Hungarian; 
Italian,  however,  is  the  language  in  which  all  orders  are  given. 
The  crew  is  lighthearted  and  merry  :  in  the  evening  a  gentle 
breeze  carries  the  lively  songs  of  the  Italians  over  the  blue 
sea,  glowing  under  the  midnight  sun,  or  the  monotonous 
cadence  oftheZz/tffo?  of  the  Dalmatians  recalls  the  sunny  home 
which  they  are  so  soon  to  exchange  for  its  very  opposite, 
which  remains  a  sort  of  mystery  to  all  their  powers  of  fancy. 
Thus  begins  so  peacefully  our  long  voyage  into  the  frozen 
ocean  of  the  north.  In  a  few  weeks  the  ice  will  grate  on  the 
bows  of  the  Tegetthoff,  the  crystal  icebergs  will  surround  her, 
and  with  many  a  strain  will  the  good  ship  force  her  way 
through  the  icy  wastes,  sometimes  inclosed  on  every  side, 


76  'AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGKS.  [(HAP. 


sometimes  free  in  coast-water,  or  threatened  by  the  'ice-blink* 
foreboding  danger." 

7.  The  officers  and  crew  of  the  Tcgetthoff  amounted  in  all 
to  twenty-four  souls. 


Lieutenant  Carl  Weyprecht,  )    _     • 
Lieutenant  Julius  Payer,          (  Commander,  of 


the 


Lieutenant  Gustav  Brosch,*  ) 
Midshipman  Edward  Orel,      |  °-^cers  °f  ihe  Sht^' 
Dr.  Julius  Kepes,  Physician  to  the  Expedition. 
Otto  Krisch,  Engineer. 
Pietro  Lusina,  t  Boatswain. 
Antonio  Vecerina,  Carpenter. 
Josef  Pospischill,  Stoker. 
Johann  Orasch,  Cook. 
lohann  Haller,       ) 

Alexander  Klotz,  |  >^'  from  1>'ro1- 
Antonio  Zaninovich,  Seaman. 
Antonio  Catarinich,  ditto. 
Antonio  Scarpa,  ditto. 
Antonio  Lukinovich,  ditto. 
Giuseppe  Latkovich,  ditto. 
Pietro  Fallesich,  ditto. 
George  Stiglich,  ditto. 
Vincenzo  Palmich,  ditto. 
Lorenzo  Marola,  ditto. 
Francesco  Lettis,  ditto. 
Giacomo  Sussich,  ditto. 

Captain  Olaf  Carlsen,  Icemaster  and  Harpooner. 

We  had  eight  dogs  on  board  ;  two  we  got  in  Lapland,  the  rest  were  brought  from 
Vienna. 

8.  Stormy  weather  detained  us  for  some  time  among  the 
Loffoden  Isles,  so  that  we  made  Tromsoe  only  on  July  3. 
Here  we  were  received  most  courteously  by  the  Austro- 
Hungarian  Consul,  Aagaard,  who  invited  us  to  a  banquet. 
We  remained  here  a  week,  in  order  to  complete  our  equip- 
ment. The  ship,  which  had  leaked  considerably  ever  since  we 
left  Bremerhaven,  was  thoroughly  examined  by  divers,  the 
stores  were  landed,  the  ship  repaired  and  reladen.  Our  supply 
of  coals  was  replenished,  a  Norwegian  whale-boat  added  to 
our  equipment,  and,  lastly,  the  harpooner,  Captain  Olaf 

*  Lieutenant  Brosch  had  the  entire  care  of  the  victualling  department,  and 
deserved  our  heartiest  thanks  for  the  skill  and  self-sacrifice  with  which  he  per- 
formed his  duty. 

•j*  Formerly  Captain  in  the  Austrian  Merchant  Service. 


I.]    •   FROM  BREMERHAVEN  TO  TROMSOE.        77 

Carlsen,  was  taken  on  board.  On  July  6  we  received  our  last 
news  from  Austria,  letters  and  newspapers.  The  Ukase 
granted  by  the  Russian  Government  also  arrived,  drawn  up 
both  for  Weyprecht  and  myself  in  case  of  our  being  separated, 
a  document  of  great  importance,  if  the  ship  should  be  lost 
and  we  had  to  return  through  Siberia  ;  an  issue  only  too  prob- 
able when  the  vast  length  and  enormous  difficulties  of  the 
north-east  passage  were  considered.  While  Lieutenant 
Weyprecht  was  engaged  in  stopping  the  leak  of  the  ship, 
some  of  us  ascended- — a  Lapp  of  the  name  of  Dilkoa  being 
our  guide — a  pinnacle  of  rock,  4,000  feet  high,  towering  over 
Tromsoe's  labyrinth  of  fiords,  in  order  to  compare  our  aneroid 
and  mercurial  barometers.  From  the  summit  we  beheld  an 
enormous  dark  column  of  smoke  rising  perpendicularly  to  the 
height  of  about  1,500  feet  in  the  still  air — the  northern  ex- 
tremity of  Tromsoe  was  in  flames.  Most  gladly  would  we 
have  learned  something  of  the  state  of  the  ice  this  year ;  but 
as  yet  this  was  impracticable,  for  none  of  the  walrus  hunters 
had  returned  from  their  grounds  in  the  north. 

9.  On  the  morning  of  Saturday,  July  13,  officers  and  crew 
heard  mass  from  a  French  priest,  and  bidding  adieu  to  our 
Tromsoe  friends,  we  left  the  quiet  little  city,  the  most 
northerly  of  Europe,  early  on  Sunday  morning.  The  pas- 
sengers of  the  Hamburg  mail  steamer,  entering  the  harbour 
as  we  left  it,  greeted  us  with  loud  and  long  cheers,  and  steam- f 
ing  through  the  narrow  Grotsound,  close  under  the  cliffs  of 
Sandoe  and  Rysoe  we  came  into  the  open  sea,  Captain 
Carlsen  acting  as  our  pilot.  As  we  issued  from  the  S cheer ert^ 
a  mist  arose  which  covered  and  obscured  the  huge  rock  of 
Fingloe.  Here  the  engine  fires  were  put  out  and  the  sails  set, 
and  the  first  and  last  voyage,  which  the  Tegctthoff  was  des- 
tined to  make,  began.  On  July  15  we  steered  towards  th,e 
north,  the  Norwegian  coast  with  its  many  glaciers  in  full 
view,  and  on  the  i6th  we  sighted  the  North  Cape  in  the  blue 
distance. 


CHAPTER  II. 

ON   THE  FROZEN    OCEAN. 

I.  UNFAVOURABLE  winds  had  hindered  our  progress  for  some 
days  ;  we  now  encountered  heavy  seas.  On  July  23  a  sudden 
fall  of  the  temperature  and  dirty  rainy  weather  told  us  that  we 
were  close  to  the  ice,  which  we  expected  to  find  later  and 
much  more  to  the  northward,  and  on  the  evening  of  July  25, 
lat.  74°  o'  15"  N.,  we  actually  sighted  it,  the  thermometer 
marking  32-5°  R,  and  34*5°  F.  in  the  sea.  The  northerly 
winds,  which  had  prevailed  for  some  time  had  broken  up  the 
ice,  and  it  lay  before  us  in  long  loose  lines.  Its  outer  boundary 
was  consequently  the  very  opposite  of  those  solid  walls  of  ice 
which  we  met  with  in  Greenland  in  1869,  and  two  years 
afterwards  on  the  east  of  Spitzbergen.  Though  surprised  at 
finding  the  ice  so  far  to  the  south,  we  never  imagined  that 
this  was  anything  but  a  collection  of  floes,  which  had  drifted 
out  perhaps  from  the  Sea  of  Kara  through  the  Straits  of 
Matotschkin.  But  only  too  soon  the  conviction  was  forced 
upon  us  that  we  were  already  within  the  Frozen  Ocean,  and 
that  navigation  in  the  year  1872  was  to  differ  widely  from 
that  of  the  preceding  year.  Lieutenant  Weyprecht  had  the 
day  before  fastened  "  the  crow's  nest  "  to  the  mainmast  of  the 
Tegetthoff,  and  henceforth  it  became  the  abode  of  the  officer 
of  the  watch.  On  July  26,  while  steering  in  a  north-easterly 
direction,  the  ice  became  closer,  though  it  was  still  navigable ; 
but  we  nowhere  saw  the  heavy  fields  which  had  astonished  us 
on  the  east  coast  of  Greenland,  and  which  Liitke  found  to  be 
so  dangerous  to  navigation.  The  temperature  of  the  air  and 
the  sea  fell  rapidly,  and  during  the  two  following  weeks  it 


8o  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 


remained   below   the  freezing   point    almost   uniformly,    and 
without  any  essential  difference  between  day  and  night. 

2.  The  frozen  sea  of  Novaya  Zemlya  is  characterized  by 
that  inconstancy  of  weather  which  in   our  lower  latitudes  we 
attribute  to  the  month  of  April  ;  the  same  variability  is  met 
with,  though  in  lesser  degree,  in  the  Greenland  seas  during  the 
summer  months.     Snowstorms  now  alternated  with  the  most 
glorious  blue  skies.     The  black-bulbed  thermometer  showed 
113°  F.  in  the  sun,  with  39°  F.  in  the  shade.     The  hunting 
season  began,  and  the  kitchen  was  well  provided  with  auks 
and  seals.     Our  Dalmatians  soon  learnt  to  like  the  dark  flesh 
of  the  latter. 

3.  The  ice   gradually  became  closer  ;  July  29  (74°  44'  N- 
Lat,  52°  8'  E.  Long.)  we  were  able  to  continue  our  course 
only  under  steam,  and  heavy  shocks  were  henceforward  inevit- 
able ;  in    many  .cases  the  vessel   could    not   force  a  passage 
except  by  charging  the  ice.     In  the  night  a  vast,  apparently 
impenetrable  barrier   stopped   our   progress ;    but  the  tactics 
of  charging  under  steam    again    cleared    a  passage,    and  we 
penetrated   into  a  larger  "  ice-hole."     We   now  glided  along 
over  the  shining  surface   of  its  waters,  as   if  we  were   navi- 
gating an  inland   lake,  save  that  no  copsewood   clothed  the 
shores,    but    pale    blocks    of    ice,  which  the  mist,  that   now 
fell  and  enveloped   us,   transformed    into    the   most   fantastic 
shapes,  and  at  last  into  mere  shapelessness  itself.     In  all  that 
surrounded  us   neither  form  nor  colour  was  discernible ;  faint 
shadows  floated  within  the  veil  of  mist,  and  our  path  seemed 
to  lead  no  whither.     A  few  hours'  before  the  glowing  fire  of 
the  noonday  sun  had  lain  on  the  mountain  wastes  of  Novaya 
Zemlya,  while  refraction  raised  its  long  coast  high  above  the 
icy    horizon.     Nowhere    does    a   sudden    change    in    Nature 
exercise    so    immediate    an-  effect    on    the    mind    as    in    the 
Frozen  Ocean,  where,  too,  all    that    brings    delight  proceeds 
from  the  sun. 

4.  For   some   days  we   had   entered   into   a  world  utterly 
strange  to  most  of  us  on  board  the  Tegettkoff.     Dense  mists 
frequently  enveloped  us,  and  from  out  of  the  mantle  of  snow 
of    the    distant    land    the    rocks,    like   decayed    battlements, 
frowned  on  us  inhospitably.      There  is  no  more  melancholy 
sound  than  that  which  accompanies  the  decay  and  waste  of 


n<]  ON  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN.  81 

the  ice,  as  it  is  constantly  acted  on  by  the  sea  and  thaw,  and  no 
picture  more  sad  and  solemn  than  the  continuous  procession 
of  icebergs  floating  like  huge  white  biers  towards  the  south. 
Ever  and  anon  there  rises  the  noise  of  the  ocean  swell  break- 
ing amongst  the  excavations  of  the  ice-floes,  while  the  water 
oozing  out  from  their  icy  walls  falls  with  monotonous  sound 
into  the  sea  ;  or  perhaps  a  mass  of  snow,  deprived  of  its 
support,  drops  into  the  waves,  to  disappear  in  them  with  a 
hissing  sound  as  of  a  flame.  Never  for  a  moment  ceases 
the  crackling  and  snapping  sound  produced  by  the  bursting* 
of  the  external  portions  of  the  ice.  Magnificent  cascades 
of  thaw-water  precipitate  themselves  down  the  sides  of  the 
icebergs,  which  sometimes  rend  with  a  noise  as  of  thunder  as 
the  beams  of  the  sun  play  on  them.  The  fall  of  the  titanic 
mass  raises  huge  volumes  of  foam,  and  the  sea-birds,  which 
had  rested  on  its  summit  in  peaceful  confidence,  rise  with 
terrified  screams,  soon  to  gather  again  on  another  ice- 
colossus. 

5.  But  what  a  change,  when  the  sun,  surrounded  by  glow- 
ing cirrus  clouds,  breaks  through  the  mist,  and  the  blue  of  the 
heavens  gradually  widens  out !  The  masses  of  vapour,  as  they 
well  up,  recede  to  the  horizon,  and  the  cold  ice-floes  become 
in  the  sunlight  dark  borders  to  the  "leads"  which  gleam 
between  them,  on  the  trembling  surface  of  which  the  midnight 
sun  is  mirrored.  Where  the  rays  of  the  sun  do  not  directly 
fall  on  it,  the  ice  is  suffused  with  a  faint  rosy  haze,  which 
deepens  more  and  more  as  the  source  of  light  nears  the 
horizon.  Then  the  sunbeams  fall  drowsily  and  softly,  as 
through  a  veil  of  orange  gauze,  all  forms  lose  at  a  little, 
distance  their  definition,  the  shadows  become  fainter  and 
fainter,  and  all  nature  assumes  a  dreamy  aspect.  In  calm 
nights  the  air  is  so  mild  that  we  'forget  we  are  in  the  home 
of  ice  and  snow.  A  deep  ultramarine  sky  stretches  over  all, 
and  the  outlines  of  the  ice  and  the  land  tremble  on  the  glassy 
surface  of  the  water.  If  we  pull  in  a  boat  over  the  unmoved 
mirror  of  the  "  ice-holes,"  close  beside  us  a  whale  may  emerge 
from  its  depths,  like  a  black  shining  mountain  ;  if  a  ship 
penetrates  into  the  waste,  it  looks  as  weird  as  the  "  Flying 
Dutchman,"  and  the  dense  columns  of  smoke,  which  rise  in 
eddies  from  her  funnel,  remain  fixed  for  hours  until  they 


82  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

gradually  melt  away.  When  the  sun  sinks  at  midnight  to 
the  edge  of  the  horizon,  then  all  life  becomes  dumb,  and  the 
icebergs,  the  rocks,  the  glaciers  of  the  land  glow  in  a  rosy 
effulgence,  so  that  we  are  hardly  conscious  of  the  desolation. 
The  sun  has  reached  its  lowest  point, — after  a  pause  it  begins 
to  rise,  and  gradually  its  paler  beams  are  transformed  into  a 
dazzling  brightness.  Its  softly  warming  light  dissolves  the 
ban  under  which  congelation  has  placed  nature,  the  icy 
streams,  which  had  ceased  to  run,  pour  down  their  crystal 
walls.  The  animal  creation  only  still  enjoys  its  rest ;  the 
polar-bear  continues  to  repose  behind  some  wall  of  ice,  and 
flocks  of  sea-gulls  and  divers  sit  round  the  edge  of  a  floe, 
calmly  sleeping,  with  their  heads  under  their  wings.  Not  a 
sound  is  to  be  heard,  save,  perhaps,  the  measured  flapping 
of  the  sails  of  the  ship  in  the  dying  breeze.  At  length  the 
head  of  a  seal  rises  stealthily  for  some  moments  from  out  the 
smooth  waters ;  lines  of  auks,  with  the  short  quick  beat  of 
their  wings,  whiz  over  the  islands  of  ice.  The  mighty  whale 
again  emerges  from  the  depths,  far  and  wide  is  heard  his 
snorting  and  blowing,  which  sounds  like  the  murmurs  of  a 
waterfall  when  it  is  distant,  and  like  a  torrent  when  it  is 
near.  Day  reigns  once  more  with  its  brilliant  light,  and  the 
dreamy  character  of  the  spectacle  is  dissolved. 

6.  We  had  sailed  over  one  "ice-hole,"  and  again  a  dense 
barrier  of  ice  frowned  on  us ;  as  we  forced  our  way  into  it, 
the  ice  closed  in  all  round  us — we  were  "  beset."  The  ship 
was  made  fast  to  a  floe,  the  steam  blown  off,  its  hot  breath 
rushing  with  a  loud  noise  through  the  cold  mist  ;  every  open 
mesh  in  the  net  of  water-ways  was  closed  by  the  ice,  which 
soon  lay  in  such  thick  masses  around  us,  that  any  one  pro- 
vided with  a  plank  might  have  wandered  for  miles  in  any 
direction  he  liked.  July  30,  the  Tegetthoff  remained  fast  in 
her  prison ;  no  current  of  water,  nor  any  movement  among 
the  floes  lying  close  to  us  was  discernible ;  a  dead  calm 
prevailed,  and  mist  hung  on  every  side.  On  the  following 
day  we  made  vain  efforts  to  break  through  a  floe  which  lay 
on  our  bows.  The  calm  still  prevailed,  Aug.  I  (74°  39'  N.  L. 
53°  E.  L.),  and  no  change  was  to  be  seen  in  the  ice.  Aug.  2, 
the  crew  began  with  hearty  good-will  the  toilsome  work  of 
warping,  but  with  no  success,  the  smallness  of  the  floes  hardly 


II.]  ON  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN.  83 

admitting  of  this  manoeuvre.  In  the  evening  of  the  same 
day  it  seemed  as  if  a  fresh  breeze  would  set  us  free ;  but  after 
we  had  gone  on  for  a  few  cable-lengths,  a  great  floe  once 
more  barred  the  route,  while  at  the  same  time  the  wind  fell. 
At  length,  when  the  ice  became  somewhat  looser,  we  got  up 
the  engine  fires,  and  in  the  following  night  broke  through^ 
under  steam,  a  broad  barrier  of  ice,  which  separated  us  from 
the  open  coast-water  of  Novaya  Zemlya.  In  the  morning  of 
Aug.  3,  we  forced  our  way  into  coast-water,  twenty  miles 
broad,  to  the  north  of  Matotschkin  Schar,  and  steered  due^ 
north,  the  mountainous  coasts  still  in  sight.  A  belt  of 
ice  105  miles  broad  lay  behind  us.  The  country  greatly 
resembled  Spitzbergen,  and  we  observed  with  pleasure  its 
picturesque  glaciers  and  mountains  rising  to  the  height  of 
nearly  3,000  feet,  though  inconsiderable  compared  with  the 
mountains  of  Greenland.  Far  and  wide  not  a  fragment  of 
ice  was  to  be  seen ;  there  was  a  heavy  swell  on,  the  air  was 
unusually  warm  (41°  F.),  in  the  evening  rain  fell,  and  on  Aug.  4 
we  had  dense  mists  and  driving  snow-storms,  which  forced  us 
to  keep  to  the  west  of  Admiralty  Peninsula.  During  the  night 
of  Aug.  6,  the  snow-storms  were  heavier  than  before,  and  the 
deck  was  quite  covered.  Towards  the  north  and  west  very  close 
ice  was  seen,  and  since  the  temperature  of  the  air,  even  with 
the  winds  in  the  south-west,  remained  constantly  below  zero, 
it  was  evident  that  the  ice  must  stretch  far  in  that  direction 
also.  Aug.  7,  we  ran  on  the  white  barriers  to  the  west  of 
Admiralty  Peninsula,  and  far  to  the  north,  beyond  a  broad 
field  of  ice,  refraction  indicated  open  water  and  showed  the 
forms  of  "  Tschorny  Nos  "  floating  in  the  air.  In  the  after- 
noon of  Aug.  8  the  ice  in  75°  22'  N.  L.  became  so  thick 
around  us  that  we  were  compelled  to  have  recourse  to  steam- 
power  ;  but  the  Tegetthoff,  even  with  this  auxiliary  was  unable 
against  a  head-wind  to  penetrate  a  broad  strip  of  close  ice, 
and  banking  up  our  fires,  we  determined  to  wait  its  breaking 
up.  Close  under  the  coast  open  water  was  again  observed, 
and  in  it — a  Schooner!  Every  one  now  hastened  to  write 
letters  to  his  friends  and  relations,  but  the  schooner,  to  which 
we  meant  to  give  our  letters  and  despatches,  by  running  into 
the  heart  of  Gwosdarew  Bay  escaped  the  duty  we  had  in 
store  for  it.  About  half-past  ten  P.M.  the  wind  had  fallen  and 


84 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


the  ice  began  to  open  out,  and  we  were  able  to  continue  our 
voyage  under  steam  in  a  north-westerly  direction.  The  sun 
lay  before  us,  the  clear  mirror  of  distant  "  leads  "  glowed  with 
a  glorious  carmine,  the  barriers  of  ice  which  lay  between  these 
"  leads"  appeared  as  stripes  of  violet,  and  only  our  immediate 
neighbourhood  was  pale  and  cold.  The  Tegetthoff  laboured 
through  the  dense  accumulation  of  floes  and  about  midnight 
reached  open  water,  and  the  steam  was  again  blown  off. 
9,  we  sailed  in  coast-water  perfectly  free  from  ice, 


GWOSDAREW    INLET. 


excepting  the  icebergs  we  encountered,  some  about  forty 
feet  high.  These,  generally,  were  so  numerous  and  so  small 
in  size,  that  they  were  at  once  seen  to  be  offshoots  from 
the  small  glaciers  of  Novaya  Zemlya  as  they  plunge  into 
the  sea.  Their  surface  was  frequently  covered  with  debris. 
Loose  drift-ice  showed  itself,  Aug.  10,  but  the  ship  continued 
to  steer  between  the  floes  towards  the  north.  In  the  fore- 
noon of  that  day  we  were  again  nearly  "  beset,"  but  happily 
escaped  that  fate  after  four  hours'  warping.  Aug.  n,  our 
course  was  continued  without  impediment  in  a  northerly 
direction  through  the  loose  drift-ice.  The  land,  from  which 


ii.]  ON  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN.  85 

we  had  hitherto  remained  distant  about  eight  or  twelve 
nautical  miles,  now  declined  in  height  from  three  thousand 
to  fifteen  hundred  or  a  thousand  feet,  and  quickly  lost  its 
picturesque  character.  On  the  noon  of  August  12,  on 
account  of  a  thick  mist,  we  made  fast  to  a  great  floe,  and 
were  able  to  commence  on  it  the  training  of  the  dogs  to 
drag  the  sledges. 

7.  In  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Pankratjew  Islands,  a 
ship  suddenly  and  unexpectedly  appeared  on  the  horizon, 
and  endeavoured  to  gain  our  attention  by  discharges  from 
a  mortar,  and  by  the  hoisting  of  flags.  How  great  was  our 
astonishment  and  our  joy  when  we  beheld  the  Austro-Hun- 
garian  flag  at  the  peak  of  the  Isbjorn,  and  were  able  to  greet 
Count  Wilczek,  Commodore  Baron  Sterneck,  Dr.  Hofer,  and 
Mr.  Burger  half  an  hour  afterwards  on  board  the  Tcgettlwff. 
Coming  from  Spitzbergen  in  the  Isbjorn  (the  ship  of  our  pre- 
cursory expedition  of  187 1 )  they  had  sighted  us  two  days  before. 
That  in  a  sailing  vessel,  and  without  any  sufficient  equipment, 
they  had  succeeded  in  following  and  overtaking  the  Tegetthoff, 
which  had  penetrated  so  far  with  difficulty  and  by  the  aid  of 
steam  was  a  proof  both  of  skill  and  resolution.  Their  object 
*  was  to  establish  a  depot  of  provisions  at  Cape  Nassau,  at  what- 
ever personal  risk  to  themselves.  About  two  o'clock  in  the 
morning  our  guests  returned  to  the  Isbjorn,  and  both  ships  now 
sailed  in  company,  and  without  meeting  any  hindrance  in  the 
ice-free  coast-water,  in  a  northerly  direction.  In  the  forenoon 
of  Aug.  13,  in  76°  1 8'  N.  Lat.  and  61°  17'  E.  Long.,  we  came 
upon  closer  ice,  amid  mist  and  stormy  weather,  and  the  two 
ships  anchored  to  some  firm  land-ice  two  cable-lengths  from 
each  other,  about  a  mile  from  the  land.  Close  to  the  south' 
of  us  lay  the  Barentz  Isles  with  their  singularly  formed  hills, 
which  the  walrus-hunters  call  by  the  somewhat  gloomy  name 
of  "  The  Three  Coffins."  On  our  north  an  enormous  iceberg 
rose  in  dazzling  whiteness  above  a  faintly  glimmering  field 
of  ice,  a  harbinger  of  new  countries — for  its  size  forbade  us 
to  think  that  it  owed  its  origin  to  the  glaciers  of  Novaya 
Zemlya.  Continuous  winds  from  the  W.S.W.,  close  ice, 
mist,  downfalls  of  snow,  the  necessity  of  determining  the 
geographical  position  of  the  depot  of  provisions  which  we 
had  established,  compelled  us  to  lie  for  eight  days  before  the 


86  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP 


Barentz  Islands.  The  opportunity  we  thus  had  of  putting 
our  feet  once  more  on  the  land  was  exceedingly  agreeable. 
We  made  repeated  visits  to  the  shore  with  two  dog-sledges, 
in  company  with  Professor  Hofer ;  and  as  his  observations 
on  the  phenomena  of  the  country  are  those  of  a  distin- 
guished geologist,  I  here  insert  those  he  has  kindly  placed  at 
my  disposal. 

8.  "  The  Barentz  Isles  are  flat,  girt  with  cliffs,  and  separated 
by  narrow  straits  from   the  coast,  which  rises   up  terrace  on 
terrace.     Its  rocks  consist  of  a  black,  very  friable  slate,  fre- 
quently   alternating    with    strata   of    mountain    limestone    of 
the  carboniferous   period,   varying   in   breadth    from    one   to 
ten  metres.    These  strata  are  filled  with  a  countless  number  of 
fossilized  inhabitants  of  the  sea,  trilobites,  mussels,  brachiopodes, 
crinoides,  corals,  &c.,  which  are  utterly  foreign  to  the  Frozen 
Ocean  as  it  now  is,  and  whose  cognates  live  only  in  warm 
seas. 

9.  "  The  animal  world,  therefore,  buried   in  the  limestone 
of  these  islands,  is  an  indisputable  proof  that  there  was  once, 
in  these  high  latitudes,  a  warm  sea,  which  could  not  possibly 
co-exist  with  such  great  glaciers  as  those  which  now  immerse 
themselves   in    the    seas   of   Novaya   Zemlya.     That    portion 
of  the  earth,  now  completely  dead  and  buried   in  ice,   once 
knew  a  period  of  luxuriant  life.     In  its  sea  there  revelled  a 
world   of  life,  manifold  and   beautiful  in   its  forms,  while   the 
land,    as    the   discoveries    on    Bear   Island   and    Spitzbergen 
prove,  was  crowded  with  gigantic  palm-like  ferns.    This  age  of 
the  earth's  history  is  called  the  carboniferous  period  ;  it  was 
the  rich  and  fertile  youth  of  the  high  north,  which  lived  out 
its  time  more  rapidly  than  the  southern  zones,  now  in  all  their 
vigour  and  variety.     If  we  compare  the  Fauna  buried  in  the 
chalk   formations    of  the    Barentz   Isles,  with  the  contempo- 
raneous Fauna  which  we  know  from  the  carboniferous  forma- 
tion   of   Russia,    specially  that    of  the  Ural,  we  find  a  very 
remarkable    agreement,   not   only  in   their  general  character, 
but  also  in  particular  organisms.     Many  of  the  fossils  of  the 
carboniferous    limestone    of    these    high    degrees    of  latitude 
(76°— 77°)  are  found  in  analogous  strata  of  the  Ural,  and  are 
proved  by  the  researches  of  Russian  geologists  to  exist  there 
as  far  as  the  fiftieth  degree  of  latitude.     Without  stopping  to 


II.]  ON  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN.  87 

insist  on  the  great  similarity  between  the  stratification  of 
Novaya  Zemlya  and  the  Ural — the  former  being  the  real 
continuation  of  the  latter — we  dwell  here  on  the  fact  that  in 
the  carboniferous  period  there  was  a  sea  which  stretched 
from  the  fiftieth  to  the  seventy-seventh  degree  of  north  lati- 
tude, i.e.  twenty-seven  degrees,  or  405  geographical  miles,  which 
was  animated  by  the  same  Fauna,  and  which  consequently 
must  have  presented  the  same  relations,  especially  a  like 
warm  temperature.  From  these  signs  it  would  appear  that 
the  zones  of  climate  now  so  decisively  marked  on  the  surface 
of  the  earth  did  not  exist  at  the  carboniferous  period.  The 
horizontal  surface  of  the  land  leads  us  at  the  first  to  infer 
horizontal  stratification  ;  but  we  find  the  contrary  to  be  the 
case  ;  the  marine  deposits  once  horizontal,  have  been  so 
raised  at  a  later  period  that  they  are  now  vertical.  Since  the 
friable  slate  degrades  rapidly,  and  the  limestone  layers  very 
gradually,  it  may  be  assumed  that  the  former  wasting  away 
leaves  the  limestone  layers  standing  like  walls  between  them 
— a  thing  which,  in  a  small  scale,  may  often  be  elsewhere 
observed.  If  a  glance  at  these  buried  fossils  awakens  in  us 
an  image,  as  in  a  dream,  of  a  creation  rich. in  organic  forms,  a 
glance  at  the  present  state  of  the  Barentz  Isles  impresses  us 
with  the  gloomiest  feelings. 

10.  "  Before  us  lies  this  small  greyish  brown  fragment  of 
the  earth.  The  cold,  level  ground  is  covered  with  sharp-edged 
pieces  of  rock,  which  appear  to  be  as  it  were  macadamised, 
so  closely  are  they  rammed  together.  Here  and  there,  about 
a  fathom's  length  from  each  other,  lie  brownish  green  masses, 
like  mole-hills.  When  we  examine  them  more  closely,  each 
mass  resolves  itself  into  a  vast  number  of  small  plants  of  the 
same  species  (Saxifraga  oppositifolid),  whose  little  stalks  are 
covered  with  dark  green  leaves,  which  are  alive,  and  also  with 
brow.n  leaves,  which  have  been  dead  for  years  and  years,  but 
wither  in  the  cold  much  more  gradually  than  with  us.  From 
this  small  heap,  tender  rosy  blooms  raise  their  little  heads, 
bidding  defiance  to  the  bitter  snowy  weather  which  sweeps 
over  the  miserable  plain.  Another  species  of  saxifrage  (Saxi- 
fraga ccespitosa),  with  shorter  stalks  and  yellowish-white 
flowers,  growing  in  thick  clumps,  forms,  together  with  the  first- 
named  variety  and  the  more  rarely  appearing  Saxifraga 


88  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 


rivularis,  the  hardiest  representatives  of  this  family  of  plants 
so  frequently  found  in  the  Polar  regions.  If  to  these  we  add 
Draba  arctica  with  its  little  yellow  flowers,  forming  in  valleys 
large  patches  of  sward,  the  yellow  flowering  poppy  (Papaver 
nudicaule},  and  a  rare  willow  (Salix polaris),  which  with  some 
few  leaves  peeps  forth  from  the  soil,  we  have  described  the 
whole  Flora  of  that  desolate  waste,  in  which  a  mere  passing 
glance  would  scarce  detect  the  existence  of  vegetable  life 
among  the  debris  of  rocks  and  the  heaps  of  snow.  Mosses 
are  found  here  and  there  in  the  moister  fissures  of  rocks,  and 
especially  on  the  coast,  where  old  drift-wood,  or  the  bones  of 
whales  or  other  animals,  afford  the  nourishment  they  need, 
and  in  some  places  the  mosses  spread  themselves  out  into 
small  carpets.  Lichens  love  to  shelter  under  the  clusters  of 
the  different  kinds  of  saxifrage,  though  sometimes  they  are 
found  by  themselves.  Of  this  class  we  will  mention  merely  the 
so-called  Iceland  moss  (Cetraria  islandica),  and  a  reindeer  lichen 
{Cladonia pyxidata)  ;  the  few  other  forms  are  nearly  related 
to  those  mentioned,  and  belong  to  the  so-called  creeping* 
lichens.  One  peculiarity  of  the  Flora  of  the  far  north,  which 
we  have  already  mentioned,  is  their  growth  in  clumps.  Only 
thus  can  these  tender  organisms  maintain  their  existence 
against  the  stern  elements  ;  and  this  indeed  is  a  charac- 
teristic of  all  Arctic  creation,  which  is  seen  in  the  animal 
world  also,  when  its  means  of  nourishment  are  hard  to  find. 
We  will  point  only  to  the  herds  of  reindeer,  of  lemmings,  of 
walruses,  of  seals,  &c,  lastly  to  the  vast  flocks  of  birds  ;  all 
of  which  illustrate  the  principle  :  common  danger  begets  common 
defence." 

ii.  Our  involuntary  leisure  at  the  Barentz  Isles  enabled  us 
to  make  some  precautionary  preparations  for  our  future  con- 
tests with  the  ice  ;  for  a  ship  may  be  crushed  by  the  ice  and 
sink  in  a  few  minutes,  as  had  happened  some  days  previously, 
not  far  from  us,  to  the  yachts  Valborg  and  Iceland.  Provisions 
and  ammunition  for  four  weeks  were  got  ready,  and  each  man 
was  entrusted  with  a  special  service,  if  it  should  ever  come  to 
this  extremity.  To  guard  against  the  dreaded  pressures  of 
the  ice,  heavy  beams  were  hung  round  the  hull  of  the  vessel, 
so  that  the  pressure  on  the  ship  might  be  distributed  over  a 
-larger  surface,  and  the  vessel  itself  be  raised  instead  of  crushed. 


II.] 


ON  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN. 


Our  space  on  deck,  somewhat  limited  at  first,  had  been  con- 
siderably enlarged,  although  our  numerous  sledges,  our  stock 
of  drift-wood,  and  the  rudder  which  had  been  unshipped, 
formed  inconvenient  obstacles,  while  the  chained-up  dogs 
occasioned  some  unpleasant  surprises  to  those  who  had  not 
succeeded  in  gaining  their  affections.  These  poor  animals, 
without  protection,  suffered  much  from  the  cold  rough  weather 
which  now  prevailed,  though  subsequently  some  provision  was 
made  for  their  comfort.  Sumbu  and  Pekel,  the  two  Lapland 
dogs,  were  the  most  hardy,  and  slept  without  stirring,  even 
when  they  were  completely  covered  with  snow.  It  was  only 
after  a  long  and  stout  resistance  that  the  dogs  became  accus- 
tomed to 'the  flesh  of  seals;  at  first  they  growled  at  every 
one  who  offered  it  to  them. 


-  ^  , 


FORMATION    OF   THE    DEPOT    AT    "  THE   THREE   COFFINS." 

12.  Aug.  14,  we  were  threatened  by  the  advance  of  an 
enormous  line  of  pack-ice,  which  inclosed  us  in  the  little 
"  docks  "  of  the  land-ice,  and  caused  the  Isbjorn  to  heel  over. 
In  the  evening  a  bear  came  near  this  vessel,  which  was  shot 
by  Professor  Hb'fer  and  Captain  Kjelsen.  On  the  following 
day,  with  the  help  of  the  dogs  and  sledges,  we  removed  over 
the  land-ice  to  "  The  Three  Coffins  "  the  provisions  which  were 
to  form  the  depot :  2,000  Ibs.  of  rye-bread  in  casks,  1,000  Ibs. 
of  pease-sausages  in  tin  cases.  These  were  deposited  in  the 
crevice  of  a  rock  and  secured  against  the  depredations  of 
8 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


bears.  We  felt  assured  of  the  conscientiousness  of  Russian  or 
Norwegian  fishermen,  that  they  would  make  use  of  these 
provisions  only  under  the  pressure  of  urgent  necessity.  This 
depot  was  intended  to  be  the  first  place  of  refuge,  in  the  event 
of  the  ship  being  lost. 

13.  Both  ships  were  dressed  with  flags,  and  round  one 
common  table  we  celebrated  the  birthday,  Aug.  18,  of  the 
Emperor  and  King,  Francis  Joseph  I.  On  Aug.  19  we  fetched 
some  drift-wood  from  the  land,  and  saw  from  a  height  an 


THE    "  TEGETTHOFF  "   AND    "  ISBJORN  "    SEPARATE. 

"  ice-hole  "  stretching  to  the  north  at  no  great  distance  from 
the  coast.  As  we  returned  to  the  ship  we  came  across  a  bear, 
which,  being  assailed  by  so  many  hunters  at  once,  took  to 
flight.  Aug.  20,  some  changes  in  the  ice  seemed  to  make 
navigation  possible,  and  we  forthwith  went  on  board  the 
Isbjorn  to  bid  adieu  to  our  friends.  It  was  no  common  fare- 
well. A  separation  to  those  who  are  themselves  separated 
from  the  world  moves  the  heart  to  its  depths.  -But  besides 
this,  in  bidding  adieu  to  Count  Wilczek,  we  felt  how  much  we 


II.] 


ON  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN. 


were  indebted  to  him,  as  the  man  who  had  fostered  the  work 
we  were  about  to  undertake,  who  dreaded  no  danger  while 
providing  for  our  safety  in  the  event  of  a  catastrophe  to  the 
expedition.  Our  high-minded  friend  was  at  this  moment  the 
embodiment  of  our  country,  which,  honouring  us  with  its 
confidence  and  trust,  demanded  that  we  should  devote  all  our 
energies  to  the  high  objects  of  the  expedition.  Often  after- 
wards did  this  adieu  return  to  our  memories.  With  a  fresh 
wind  from  the  north-east  we  passed  the  Isbjorn  as  we  steamed 
towards  the  north,  while  this  vessel,  veiled  in  mist,  soon 
disappeared  from  our  eyes. 


THE    "  TEGETTHOFF       FINALLY    BESET. 


14.  Our  prospects,  so  far  as  the  object  of  our  expedition 
was  concerned,  had  meantime  not  improved.  To  cross  the 
Frozen  Sea  to  Cape  Tscheljuskin  in  the  present  year  was  not 
to  be  dreamt  of,  and  yet  the  thought  of  wintering  in  the 
north  of  Novaya  Zemlya  was  positively  intolerable.  The 
navigable  water  was  becoming  narrower  every  day,  and  the 
ice  seemed  to  increase  in  solidity,  especially  in  the  neighbour- 
hood of  the  coast.  In  the  afternoon  of  this  day  we  ran  into 
an  "  ice-hole,"  but  in  the  night  barriers  of  ice  stopped  our 


92  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  n. 

further  progress.  As  usual,  the  ship  was  made  fast  to  a  floe, 
the  steam  blown  off,  and  we  awaited  the  parting  asunder  of 
the  ice.1  Five  walruses  who  had  been  watching  us  from  a 
rock  as  we  entered  that  ill-starred  "  ice-hole,"  sprang  into  the 
water  and  disappeared. 

15.  Ominous  were  the  events  of  that  day,  for  immediately 
after  we  had  made  fast  the  Tegetthoff  to  that  floe,  the  ice  closed 
in  upon  us  from  all  sides  and  we  became  close  prisoners  in  its 
grasp.  No  water  was  to  be  seen  around  us,  and  never  again 
were  we  destined  to  see  our  vessel  in  water.  Happy  is  it  for 
men  that  inextinguishable  hope  enables  them  to  endure  all 
the  vicissitudes  of  fate,  which  are  to  test  their  powers  of  endur- 
ance, and  that  they  can  never  see,  as  at  a  glance,  the  long 
series  of  disappointments  in  store  for  therri !  We  must  have 
been  filled  with  despair,  had  we  known  that  evening  that  we 
were  henceforward  doomed  to  obey  the  caprices  of  the  ice,  that 
the  ship  would  never  again  float  on  the  waters  of  the  sea,  that 
all  the  expectations  with  which  our  friends,  but  a  few  hours 
before,  saw  the  Tegetthoff  steam  away  to  the  north,  were  now 
crushed  ;  that  we  were  in  fact  no  longer  discoverers,  but  passen- 
gers against  our  will  on  the  ice.  From  day  to  day  we  hoped 
for  the  hour  of  our  deliverance !  At  first  we  expected  it 
hourly,  then  daily,  then  from  week  to  week  ;  then  at  the  seasons 
of  the  year  and  changes  of  the  weather,  then  in  the  chances 
of  new  years  !  But  that  hour  never  came,  yet  the  light  of  hope, 
which  supports  man  in  all  his  sufferings,  and  raises  him  above 
them  all,  never  forsook  us,  amid  all  the  depressing  influence 
of  expectations  cherished  only  to  be  disappointed. 

1  Our  position  was  then  in  76°  22'  N.  Lat.,  63°  3'  E.  Long. 


CHAPTER  III. 

DRIFTING  IN   THE   NOVAYA   ZEMLYA   SEAS. 

i.  AT  the  end  of  August  the  temperature  in  the  Frozen 
Ocean  is  generally  at  the  freezing  point  of  the  Centigrade 
thermometer,  but  this  year  (1872)  it  was  constantly  six  degrees 
below  it.  A  cold  bleak  air  enveloped  us,  there  was  abundance 
of  snow,  the  sun  showed  himself  rarely,  and  for  some  days  he 
had  sunk,  at  midnight,  under  the  horizon.  The  ship  and  her 
rigging  were  stiff  with  ice,  and  everything  indicated  that  for  us 
winter  had  begun.  As  the  masses  of  ice  which  inclosed  us 
consisted  only  of  small  floes,  we  were  led  to  hope  that  the 
strong  east  winds  would  soon  disperse  them.  But  the  very 
contrary  really  happened,  for  the  low  temperatures,  the  calms, 
and  falls  of  snow,  bound  the  floes  of  ice  only  the  more  closely 
together,  and  within  a  few  days  congealed  them  into  one 
single  field,  in  the  midst  of  which  the  ship  remained  fast  and 
immovable.  Our  surroundings  were  monotonous  beyond 
description, — one  vast  unattractive  white  surface,  and  even  the 
high-lands  of  Novaya  Zemlya  were  covered  with  freshy  fallen 
snow. 

2.  To  reach  the  coast  of  Siberia  under  these  circumstances 
had  become  an  impossibility,  and  even  in  the  event  of  our 
being  liberated,  the  search  for  a  winter  harbour  in  Novaya 
Zemlya  would  be  a  matter  of  peril  and  difficulty.  Yet  we 
calculated  confidently  on  this  contingency  and  employed  our 
enforced  inactivity  in;completing  our  preparations  for  sledge 
journeys  during  the  autumn,  although  we  could  not  but  feel, 
that  their  importance  must  be  of  secondary  interest  and  value 
in  a  country  so  well  known  as  Novaya  Zemlya.  Meantime 
we  drifted  slowly  along  the  coast  in  a  northerly  direction  and 


94 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


apparently  under  the  influence  of  a  current,  which  has  been 
often  observed  on  the  northern  coasts  of  Novaya  Zemlya 
But  the  gloom  of  our  situation,  as  we  became  conscious  of 
our  captivity,  was  more  distinctly  and  painfully  felt.  On  the 
ist  of  September  the  temperature  sank  nine  degrees  below 
zero  (12°  R),  and  the  few  and  limited  spaces  of  open  water 
round  our  floe  disappeared.  The  sun  now  remained  six  hours 
below  the  horizon,  and  the  formation  of  young  ice  in  a  single 
night  often  reached  such  a  thickness,  that  we  soon  perceived 
that  our  last  hope  for  this  year  lay  in  the  setting-in  of  heavy 
equinoctial  storms  to  break  up  the  ice-fields. 


t 
ft 


ATTEMPTS   TO    GET    FREE    IN    SEPTEMBER. 


3.  On  the  2nd  of  September  a  fissure  running  through  our 
floe  reached  the  after-part  of  the  TegettJioff  and  opened  into 
a  "  lead,"  and  even  our  floe  partially  broke  up  ;  but  this 
availed  us  nothing,  for  the  ship  'itself  remained  fast  on  a  huge 
fragment.  During  the  night  of  Sept.  3,  the  after-part  of  the 
Tegetthoff  was  gently  raised  for  the  first  time  by  the  pressure 
and  driving  from  beneath  of  the  ice  ;  yet  of  the  formidable 
nature  of  such  pressure  we  had  as  yet  no  presentiment. 


in.]          DRIFTING  IN  THE  NOVAYA  ZEMLYA  SEAS.  95 

Though  our  situation  seemed  desperate,  it  was  not  attended 
by  immediate  danger,  and,  condemned  as  we  were  to  inactivity, 
we  found  the  amusement  and  occupation  we  needed  in  skating 
on  the  young  ice,  which  covered  many  of  the  newly-formed 
ice-holes  between  the  ice-floes.  Besides  the  duty  of  making 
and  recording  meteorological  observations,  the  training  of  the 
dogs,  the  bringing  ice  to  the  kitchen  to  be  transformed  into 
water,  the  manufacture  of  oil,  expeditions  on  foot  to  explore 
the  country,  were  the  only  forms  in  which  our  energies  could 
be  exerted.  Absolute  loneliness  surrounded  us ;  even  the 
Arctic  sea-gull  (Larus  glaucus)  and  the  grey  stormy  petrel 
(Procellaria  glacialis,  L.)  of  the  polar  regions,  were  but  rarely 
seen,  and  a  bear,  which,  Sept.  5,  came  within  forty  paces  of 
the  ship,  was  driven  away  by  the  awkwardness  of  our  hunters. 
The  cold  became  more  and  more  intense  and  the  weather 
more  gloomy.  Sept.  2,  the  cabin  lamp  had  to  be  lit  for  the 
first  time  about  half-past  nine  o'clock,  and  on  the  3rd  we 
began  to  heat  the  interior  parts  of  the  ship,  the  temper- 
ature of  which  had  been  for  some  time  at  zero ;  and  on 
the  nth,  the  first  fiery  belts  of  the  Aurora  flamed  in  the 
northern  heavens.  On  the  9th  and  loth,  there  was  a  very 
heavy  storm  from  the  north-east,  which  drove  us  back  for  a 
short  time  towards  the  west,  and  partially  broke  up  our  floe, 
but  all  the  efforts  of  the  next  week  to  destroy  the  connection 
of  what  remained  by  sawing  and  blasting  proved  unsuccessful. 
Blasting  with  powder,  whether  above  or  below  the  surface-ice, 
proved  ineffectual.  Even  old  fissures  in  the  ice  appeared  to 
defy  further  disruption,  segments  which  had  been  laboriously 
made  by  sawing,  froze  again  almost  immediately,  and  even 
the  application  of  steam  was  powerless  to  set  our  floe  in 
motion  and  force  the  breaking-up  of  the  parts  which  had 
been  sawn  through.  It  was  of  no  avail  that,  up  to  Oct.  7,  we 
kept  open  a  trench  round  the  ship,  by  destroying  in  the  day 
the  ice  which  had  been  formed  during  the  night :  the  expected 
disruption  of  our  ice-field  never  happened.  Dark  streaks  in 
the  heavens  still  proclaimed  that  we  were  in  the  neighbour- 
hood of  open  water,  and  though  they  seemed  only  to  indicate 
"  leads  "  of  no  great  breadth  or  extent,  they  helped  to  sustain 
our  hopes.  But  these  were  soon  doomed  to  be  disappointed, 
for  even  these  "  leads "  closed  up,  and  at  the  same  time  the 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


temperature  fell  to  an  unusually  loiv  degree.  On  the  1 5th  of 
September  we  had  15  degrees  of  cold,  and  on  the  iQth 
the  temperature  fell  i8'6  degrees  below  zero  (C.).  To  add  to 
this,  there  were  frequent  falls  of  drifting  snow.  As  long  as 
fissures  remained  we  had  opportunities  of  seal-hunting,  but 
by  the  end  of  the  month  the  "  ice-holes  "  were  overspread  with 
spongy  ice,  which  hindered  the  movements  of  our  boats  within 
them.  The  alternate  openings  and  closings  of  the  water-ways 
around  us  seemed  in  our  monotonous  life  a  harmless  spectacle, 
for  the  lofty  walls  of  piled-up  ice  had  not  as  ye  for  us  the 
language  of  imminent  and  threatening  dangers. 


SEAL-HUNTING — SEPTEMBER    1872. 


4.  Sept.  22,  there  was  a  fissure  in  the  ice  about  thirty  paces 
from  the  ship,  and  we  quickly  put  on  board  all  the  materials 
which  were  Vmg  on  ^e  fl°e>  believing  that  the  moment  of 
our  deliverance  had  come.  But  no  such  moment  came,  nor 
did  the  equinoctial  storms  which  we  expected  set  in  ;  we  con- 
tinued to  drift  still  further  to  the  north ;  and  on  Oct.  2,  we  had 
passed  the  seventy-seventh  degree  of  north  latitude.  In  the 
beginning  of  this  month  a  storm,  which  lasted  but  a  short 
time,  opened  up  a  large  "  ice-hole  " .  near  the  after-part  of  the 


III.] 


DRIFTING  IN  THE  NOVAYA  ZEMLYA  SEAS. 


97 


ship,  and  forthwith  we  set  to  work  to  open  a  passage  through 
our  floe  in  order  to  reach  it,  but  two  days  afterwards  this 
"  ice-hole "  also  closed  up.  Yet  amid  all  our  mishaps  we 
forgot  not  on  October  the  4th — the  name-day  of  his  Majesty 
the  Emperor  Francis  Joseph  I. — the  homage  which  was  due 
to  our  noble  and  gracious  Sovereign.  The  ship  was  gaily 
dressed  with  flags,  and  a  rifle-match,  in  which  watches  and 
pipes  were  the  prizes,  scared  away  for  a  short  afternoon  the 
sad  impressions  of  the  moment. 


! 


SHOOTING    AT    A    TARGET,    OCTOBER    1872. 

5.  Encounters  with  polar  bears  afforded  us  much  excitement 
On  the  6th  of  October  our  first  bear  was  killed  and  divided 
among  the  dogs,  for  as  yet  we  had  not  learnt  to  regard  the 
flesh  of  these  animals  as  the  most  precious  part  of  our  pro- 
visions. A  fox  also,  the  first  seen  during  this  expedition, 
showed  himself  during  the  previous  night.  He  had  evidently 
come  from  Novaya  Zemlya,  and  his  curiosity  had  led  him 
close  to  the  ship,  from  whence  he  was  driven  by  the  dogs, 
It  now  became  indispensable  for  everyone  who  left  the  imme- 
diate neighbourhood  of  the  ship  to  carry  arms  with  him,  and 


98  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

the  neglect  of  this  precaution  had  sometimes  rather  ludicrous, 
at  other  times  somewhat  serious,  consequences.  On  the  nth 
of  October  I  left  the  ship  unarmed,  and  with  no  other  com- 
panion than  our  Lapland  dog,  Pekel,  to  employ  myself  in  the 
harmless  occupation  of  piling  up  a  tower  of  ice.  Working  as 
I  was  in  a  stooping  position,  I  was  unconscious  of  what  was 
immediately  around  me,  when  on  a  sudden  the  loud  barking 
of  Pekel  caused  me  to  raise  myself,  and  I  saw  a  bear  quite 
close  before  me.  Shaking  his  head  and  making  a  snuffling 
noise,  he  came  on  towards  me.  In  the  expectation  that 
some  of  the  people  engaged  on  deck  would  see  my  critical 
position,  I  contented  myself  with  shaking  my  fist  at  him, 
unwilling  to  reveal  any  weakness  to  my  enemy.  As  this, 
however,  seemed  to  produce  no  effect,  I  cried  out  repeatedly, 
"  A  bear  !  "  At  last  I  saw  Klotz,  who  was  on  deck,  go  to  the 
stand  of  arms,  but  with  such  stoical  composure,  that  I  ceased 
to  trust  .to  others,  and  left  to  the  bear,  who  had  now  advanced 
to  a  distance  of  about  fifteen  paces  from  me,  the  glory  of 
forcing  his  enemy  to  take  to  flight. 

6:  In  the  first  days  of  October  the  temperature  rose  con- 
siderably, the  thermometer  standing  a  little  below  zero  (C.). 
This  was  due  to  south-west  winds,  and  to  the  temporary  exten- 
sion of  the  "ice-holes"  in  our  immediate  neighbourhood. 
The  days  now  became  shorter,  the  sun  surrounded  with  red 
masses  of  clouds  set  behind  barriers  of  blackish-blue  ice,  and 
an  ever-deepening  twilight  followed  his  disappearance.  Sept. 
29,  a  "  snowfinch  "  flew  from  the  coast  of  Novaya  Zemlya  to 
the  ship,  hopped  about  the  deck  for  a  little  time,  and  after 
delighting  us  all  by  his  little  song,  again  left  us.  Some  few 
sea-gulls  still  wended  their  flight  to  the  spaces  of  water  in  our 
neighbourhood.  Skimming  over  the  top  of  the  mast,  they 
seemed  to  gaze  down  upon  us,  and  then  with  a  shrill  cry  darted 
away  like  arrows  towards  the  south.  There  was  something 
melancholy  in  this  departure  of  the  birds  ;  it  seemed  as  if  all 
creatures  were  retiring  from  the  long  reign  of  night  which  was 
before  us.  In  order  to  divert  our  attention  from  the  dreadful 
monotony  of  our  captivity  by  some  occupation  in  the  open 
air,  we  fell  on  the  plan  of  building  houses  of -ice  round %  the 
ship.  The  activity  of  a  building-yard  reigned  on  our  ice-floe  ; 
heavy  ice-tables  were  broken  or  sawed  through,  the  dogs  in 


III.] 


DRIFTING  IN  THE  NOVAYA  ZEMLYA  SEAS. 


99 


the  sledges  carried  the  fragments  to  their  appointed  places, 
and  with  these  blocks  we  raised  crystal  walls  and  towers. 
Snow,  mixed  with  sea-water,  furnished  an  inexhaustible 
source  of  the  most  excellent  mortar ;  and  v/hile  we  worked 
laboriously  at  these  meaningless  erections,  we  earned  at  least 
by  our  labour  the  reward  of  sleep  free  from  care. 

7.  As  we  drifted  helplessly  northward,  the  coasts  of  Novaya 
Zemlya  receded  gradually  from  our  gaze.  Hitherto  we  had 
lain  close  to  the  land,  which  with  its  rounded  mountains  and 


PARHELIA  ON  THE  COAST  OF  NOVAYA  ZEMLYA. 


valleys  filled  with  glaciers  seemed  a  miniature  of  Alpine 
scenery.  Daily  almost  the  gigantic  luminous  arcs  of  parhelia 
stood  above  it,  the  usual  precursors  of  stormy  weather  or 
heavy  falls  of  snow.  Towards  the  north  and  north-east  the 
country  becomes  flatter,  and  runs  into  glacier-wastes  little 
raised  above  the  level  of  the  sea.  The  topography  of  the 
northern  parts  of  Novaya  Zemlya  is  complete  confusion.  The 
only  survey  which  exists — that  of  Liitke — extends  no  further 
than  Cape  Nassau.  The  maps  of  the  Barentz  Isles  ase 
frequently  in  contradiction  with  fact,  and  their  correction  is 
extremely  desirable.  Though  this  land  was  of  no  value  for 
our  object,  yet  it  was  still  land,  and  it  seemed  also  to  us, 


ioo  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  in. 

drifting  as  we  did,  the  symbol  of  the  stable  and  immovable. 
But  now  it  was  gradually  disappearing  from  our  eyes.  During 
September  we  had  moved  slowly,  but  with  October  we  drifted 
at  a  greater  rate,  so  that  by  the  I2th  of  this  month  we  saw 
nothing  but  a  line  of  heights  some  thirty  miles  off,  towards 
the  south.  At  last  every  trace  of  land  disappeared  from  our 
gaze  j  a  hopeless  waste  received  us,cin  which  no  man  could 
tell  how  long  we  should  be,  or  how  far  we  should  penetrate. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE   "TEGETTHOFF"   FAST  BESET   IN  THE  ICE. 

I.  AUTUMN  was  passing  away,  the  days  were  getting  shorter, 
and  in  our  immediate  neighbourhood  no  movement  in  the  ice 
was  perceptible,  save  that  we  had  drifted  continuously  towards 
the  north-east ;  sometimes,  though  rarely,  a  fissure  in  the  ice 
grew  to  the  proportions  of  an  "  ice-hole,"  only,  however,  to 
be  quickly  frozen  over  and  present  a  surface  for  our  skates. 
There  lay  the  frozen  sea,  the  picture  of  dull,  hopeless  mono- 
tony ;  shelter  there  was  none.  Our  floe,  though  it  seemed 
to  combine  the  conveniences  of  a  winter  harbour,  could  not 
stand  the  test  of  closer  observation,  the  illusion  of  such  a 
notion  must  be  short-lived.  But  many  signs  now  indicated 
the  insecurity  of  our  position.  Fields  of  ice  in  our  neigh- 
bourhood cracked  and  split  asunder,  and  piled-up  masses 
floated  round  us,  silent  preachers,  as  it  were,  of  the  destruc- 
tion which  ice-pressure  could  produce. 

2.  A  change,  however,  was  soon  to  come  over  the  scene. 
On  the  evening  of  October  12  we  imagined  that  the  cabin 
lamp  oscillated,  and  consequently  that  our  floe  was  in  motion. 
On  the  same  night  we  were  conscious  of  a  violent  movement 
in  the  ice.  A  dreadful  day  was  the  I3th  of  October, — a 
Sunday  ;  it  was  decisive  of  the  fate  of  the  expedition.  To 
the  superstitious  amongst  us  the  number  13  was  clothed 
with  a  profound  significance  :  the  committee  of  the  expedition 
had  been  constituted  on  February  13;  on  the  I3th  of  January 
the  keel  of  the  Tegetthoff  had  been  laid  down ;  on  the  I3th 
of  April  she  was  launched;  on  the  I3th  of  June  we  left 


102  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

Bremerhaven ;  on  the  I3th  of  July,  Tromsoe  ;  after  a  voyage 
of  13  days  we  had  arrived  at  the  ice,  and  on  the  I3th  of 
October  the  temperature  marked  16  degrees  below  zero  (C). 
In  the  morning  of  that  day,  as  we  sat  at  breakfast,  our  floe 
burst  across  immediately  under  the  ship.  Rushing  on  deck 
we  discovered  that  we  were  surrounded  and  squeezed  by  the 
ice ;  the  after-part  of  the  ship  was  already  nipped  and  pressed, 
and  the  rudder,  which  was  the  first  to  encounter  its  assault, 
shook  and  groaned;  but  as  its  great  weight  did  not  admit 
of  its  being  shipped,  we  were  content  to  lash  it  firmly.  We 
next  sprang  on  the  ice,  the  tossing  tremulous  motion  of  which 
literally  filled  the  air  with  noises  as  of  shrieks  and  howls,  and 
we  quickly  got  on  board  all  the  materials  which  were  lying 
on  the  floe,  and  bound  the  fissures  of  the  ice  hastily  together 
by  ice-anchors  and  cables,  filling  them  up  with  snow,  in  the 
hope  that  frost  would  complete  our  work,  though  we  felt  that 
a  single  heave  might  shatter  our  labours.  But,  just  as  in  the 
risings  of  a  people  the  wave  of  revolt  spreads  on  every  side, 
so  now  the  ice  uprose  against  us.  Mountains  threateningly 
reared  themselves  from  out  the  level  fields  of  ice,  and  the  low 
groan  which  issued  from  its  depths  grew  into  a  deep  rumbling 
sound,  and  at  last  rose  into  a  furious  howl  as  of  myriads  of 
voices.  Noise  and  confusion  reigned  supreme,  and  step  by 
step  destruction  drew  nigh  in  the  crashing  together  of  the 
fields  of  ice.  Our  floe  was  now  crushed,  and  its  blocks,  piled 
up  into  mountains,  drove  hither  and  thither.  Here,  they 
towered  fathoms  high  above  the  ship,  and  forced  the  protect- 
ing timbers  of  massive  oak,  as  if  in  mockery  of  their  purpose, 
against  the  hull  of  the  vessel ;  there,  masses  of  ice  fell  down 
as  into  an  abyss  under  the  ship,  to  be  engulfed  in  the  rushing 
waters,  so  that  the  quantity  of  ice  beneath  the  ship  was  con- 
tinually increased,  and  at  last  it  began  to  raise  her  quite  above 
the  level  of  the  sea.  About  11.30  in  the  forenoon,  according 
to  our  usual  custom,  a  portion  of  the  Bible  was  read  on  deck, 
and  this  day,  quite  accidentally,,  the  portion  read  was  the 
history  of  Joshua  :  but  if  in  his  day  the  sun  stood  still,  it  was 
more  than  the  ice  now  showed  any  inclination  to  do. 

3.  The  terrible  commotion  going  on  around  us  prevented 
us  from  seeing  anything  distinctly.  The  sky  too  was  over- 
cast, the  sun's  place  could  only  be  conjectured.  In  all  haste 


IV.]    THE  "TEGETTHOFF  "  FAST  BESET  IN  THE  ICE.  103 

we  began  to  make  ready  to  abandon  the  ship,  in  case  it 
should  be  crushed,  a  fate  which  seemed  inevitable,  if  she 
were  not  sufficiently  raised  through  the  pressure  of  the  ice. 
About  12.30  the  pressure  reached  a  frightful  height,  every 
part  of  the  vessel  strained  and  groaned  ;  the  crew,  who  had 
been  sent  down  to  dine,  rushed  on  deck.  The  Tegettkoffh&d 
heeled  over  on  her  side,  and  huge  piles  of  ice  threatened  to 
precipitate  themselves  upon  her.  But  the  pressure  abated, 
and  the  ship  righted  herself;  and  about  one  o'clock,  when 
the  danger  was  in  some  degree  over,  the  crew  went  below  to 
dine.  But  again  a  strain  was  felt  through  the  vessel,  every- 
thing which  hung  freely  began  to  oscillate  violently,  and  all 
hastened  on  deck,  some  with  the  unfinished  dinner  in  their 
hands,  others  stuffing  it  into  their  pockets.  Calmly  and 
silently,  amid  the  loud  sounds  emitted  by  the  ice  in  its  violent 
movement,  the  officers  assumed  and  carried  out  the  special 
duty  which  had  been  assigned  to  each  in  the  contemplated 
abandonment  of  the  ship.  Lieutenant  Weyprecht  got  ready 
the  boats,  Brosch  and  Orel  cleared  out  the  supply  of  pro- 
vision to  be  taken  in  them  ;  Kepes,  our  doctor,  had  an  eye  to 
his  drugs ;  the  Tyrolese  opened  the  magazine,  and  got  out  the 
rifles  and  ammunition — I  myself  attended  to  the  sledges,  the 
tents,  and  the  sacks  for  sleeping  in,  and  distributed  to  the 
crew  their  fur  coats.  We  now  stood  ready  to  start,  each  with 
a  bundle — whither,  no  one  pretended  to  know !  For  not  a 
fragment  of  the  ice  around  us  had  remained  whole  ;  nowhere 
could  the  eye  discover  a  still  perfect  and  uninjured  floe  to 
serve  as  a  place  of  refuge,  as  a  vast  floe  had  before  been  to 
the  crew  of  the  Hansa.  Nay,  not  a  block,  not  a  table  of  ice 
was  at  rest,  all  shapes  and  sizes  of  it  were  in  active  motion, 
some  rearing  up,  some  turning  and  twisting,  none  on  the  level. 
A  sledge  would  at  once  have  been  swallowed  up,  and  in  this 
very  circumstance  lay  the  horror  of  our  situation.  For,  if 
the  ship  should  sink,  whither  should  we  go,  even  with  the 
smallest  stock  of  provisions  ? — amid  this  confusion,  how  reach 
the  land,  thirty  miles  distant, -without  the  most  indispensable 
necessaries  ? 

4.  The  dogs,  too,  demanded  our  attention.  They  had  sprung 
on  chests,  and  stared  "on  the  waves  of  ice  as  they  rose  and 
roared.  Every  trace  of  his  fox-nature  had  disappeared  from 


io4  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

"  Sumbu."  His  look,  at  other  times  so  full  of  cunning,  had 
assumed  an  expression  of  timidity  and  humility,  and,  unbidden, 
he  offered  his  paw  to  all  passers  by.  The  Lapland  dog,  little 
Pekel,  sprang  upon  me,  licked  my  hand,  and  looked  out  on 
the  ice  as  if  he  meant  to  ask  me  what  all  this  meant.  The 
large  Newfoundlands  stood  motionless,  like  scared  chamois, 
on  the  piles  of  chests. 

5.  About  4  P.M.  the  pressure   moderated  ;  an  hour  after- 
wards there  was  a  calm,  and  with  more  composure  we  could 
now  survey  our  position.     The  carpenter  shovelled  away  the 
snow  from  the  deck  in  order  to  inspect  the  seams.     They 
were  still  uninjured.     The  knees  and  cross-beams  still  held, 
and  no  very  great  quantity  of  water  was  found  in  the  hold. 
This  result  we  owed  solely  to  the  strength  of  our  ship  and  to 
her  fine  lines,  which  enabled  her  to  rise  when  nipped  and 
pressed,  while  her  interior,  so  well  laden  as  to  become  a  solid 
body,   increased    her  powers  of  resistance.     Everything  was 
again  restored  to  its  place,  so  that  it  was  possible  to  go  up 
and  down  the  cabin  stairs  without  great  difficulty,  and  in  the 
evening  the  water  in  the  hold,  which  had  risen  13  inches,  was 
pumped  out  to  its  normal  depth  of  6  inches.     We  went  down 
into,  the  cabin  to  rest,  but  though  thankful  and  joyful  for  the 
issue,  our  minds  were  clouded  with  care  and  anxiety.     Hence- 
forth we  regarded  every  noise  with  suspicious  apprehensions, 
like  a  population  which  lives  within  an  area  of  earthquakes. 
The  long  winter  nights  and  their  fearful  cold  were  before  us  ; 
we  were  drifting  into  unknown  regions,  utterly  uncertain  of 
the  end.     When  night  came,  we  fell  asleep  with  our  clothes 
on,  though  our  sleep  was  disturbed  every  now  and  then  by 
onsets  of  the  ice,  recurring  less  frequently  and  in  diminished 
force  ;  but  daily — and  for  one  hundred  and  thirty  days — we 
went    through    the   same   experiences   in   greater    or   lesser 
measure,  almost  always  in  sunless  darkness.     It  was,  however, 
a  fortunate  circumstance  for  us  that  we  encountered  the  first 
assaults  of  the  ice  at  a  time  when  we  were  still  able  to  see  ; 
for  instead  of  the  calm  preparations  we  were  able  to  make, 
hurry  and  confusion  would  have  been  inevitable  had  these 
assaults  surprised  us  amid  the  Polar  darkness. 

6.  Early  in  the  morning  of  Oct.  14  we  all  met  at  breakfast, 
but  on  every  face  there  lay  an  expression  of  grave  thoughtful- 


io6  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

ness,  for  each  of  us  was  contemplating  the  long  perspective  of 
those  dreary  nights,  in  which  we  should  drift  without  a  goal 
in  the  awful  wastes  of  the  Frozen  Sea.  The  speedy  restora- 
tion of  our  floe  was  now  our  most  earnest  desire.  It  was  only 
severe  frost  and  heavy  falls  of  snow — as  we  vainly  imagined 
— which  could  cement  the  chaos  of  broken  fragments  .around 
us  and  form  from  them*  a  new  floe  ;  for  as  yet  we  had  not 
learnt  by  experience,  that  severe  cold  in  itself,  unaccompanied 
with  wind,  is  sufficient  to  break  up  the  fields  of  ice,  from  the 
contraction  which  it  causes.  We  deluded  ourselves  with 
another  consolation — we  imagined  that  the  ice-pressures 
would  cease  as  soon  as  we  passed  the  eastern  extremity  of 
Novaya  Zemlya,  and  that  in  the  Sea  of  Kara  we  should  drift 
without  encountering  the  pressures,  due,  as  we  conceived,  to 
our  nearness  to  land.  But  vain  also  was  this  hope,  for  we 
were  drifting  not  into  the  Sea  of  Kara,  but  towards  the  north- 
east. We  should  have  found,  even  in  that  sea,  that  pressures 
from  the  ice  may  occur  within  the  Frozen  Ocean,  however, 
as  well  as  at  its  coasts.  The  masses  of  ice  which  caused  our 
disasters  probably  came  from  that  sea. 

7.  The  time  subsequent  to  this  crisis  was  full  of  painful  and 
anxious  moments,  but  a  chronological  description  of  the 
events  of  each  day,  involving  a  mere  repetition  of  our  sad 
impressions,  would  be  wearisome  to  the  reader.  I  will,  there- 
fore, transfer  from  my  journal  such  portions  of  it  as  most 
forcibly  express  the  thoughts  that  passed  through  the  minds 
of  the  handful  of  men  on  board  the  Tegetthoff  during  those 
terrible  days  : — 

"  October  14. — About  half-past  eight  o'clock  in  the  evening 
a  new  fissure  in  the  ice  appeared  astern  of  the  ship  ;  a  strain 
was  felt  throughout  her  timbers  ;  in  a  moment  every  one  in 
his  fur  dress  and  with  his  bundle  in  his  hand  was  on  deck  :  so 
will  it  be,  perhaps,  throughout  the  winter — what  a  life  ! 

"  October 15. — All  had  slept  in  their  clothes.  Fresh  pressures 
from  the  ice  were  felt  about  eight  o'clock  in  the  morning,  not 
so  powerful  as  on  the  I3th,  but  of  such  force  that  all  sprang 
from  their  berths  and  within  a  minute  again  stood  ready  on 
the  deck.  Much  ice  had  been  forced  under  the  after-part  of 
the  ship,  which  was  raised  up  by  the  pressure.  When  all  was 
calm  every  one  set  to  work  to  make  a  bag  to  contain  the  gear 


iv.]     THE  "TEGETTHOFF"  FAST  BESET  IN  THE  ICE.       107 

he  meant  to  take  if  the  ship  should  be  crushed.  Mine  con- 
tained the  following  articles  :  one  pair  of  fur  gloves,  one  pair 
of  woollen  gloves,  a  pair  of  snow  spectacles,  six  pencils,  a 
rubber,  three  note-books,  the  journal  of  my  Greenland  expedi- 
tion, a  book  of  drawings,  ten  ball-cartridges,  two  pairs  of 
stockings,  a  knife,  a  case  of  needles  and  thread.  On  the  I3th 
we  had  neglected  to  provide  ourselves  with  maps  of  Novaya 
Zemlya ;  two  of  these  I  now  included  among  my  stock  of 
necessaries.  Six  Lefaucheux  rifles,  four  Werndl-rifles,  two 
thousand  cartridges,  two  large  and  two  smaller  sledges,  a  tent 
for  ten,  one  for  six  men,  two  great  sleeping  sacks,  each  for 
eight,  and  a  smaller  one  for  six  men,  were  placed  in  the  boats. 
Although  all  these  preparations  would  have  been  quite  vain 
if  the  ship  had  sunk  with  the  ice  in  motion  to  crush  us,  we 
must,  for  our  mutual  encouragement,  keep  up  the  appearance 
of  believing  in  them.  About  six  o'clock  in  the  evening  the 
full  moon  rose,  like  a  copper  coin  fresh  from  the  mint,  above 
our  horizon  on  the  deep  blue  of  the  heavens.  In  the  evening 
the  ice  was  at  rest,  and  for  the  first  time  for  some  days  we 
ventured  to  undress  on  going  to  bed. 

"  October  16. — Slept  without  care  or  disturbance  till  two 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  when  pressure  from  the  ice  again  set 
in,  and  all  rushed  on  deck.  Some  of  the  crew  threw  out  on 
the  ice  the  antlers  of  a  reindeer  of  Novaya  Zemlya, — for 
according  to  a  superstition  of  the  seamen  the  horns  of  a  rein- 
deer are  the  generators  of  mischief !  The  ice  again  calm,  and 
I  fell  asleep  from  exhaustion  ;  but  about  half-past  five  in  the 
morning  there  was  a  new  pressure  of  about  twenty  minutes' 
duration,  and  almost  as  fearful  as  on  the  I3th  of  the  month. . 
The  exceeding  haste  with  which  every  one  rushes  up  from 
below  as  soon  as  the  ship  begins  to  strain,  shows  the  effect 
which  the  noise  makes  on  us  ;  it  is  impossible  to  become 
accustomed  to  it ;  every  one  runs  on  deck.  Again  the  ice 
rests,  but  about  half-past  seven  in  the  morning,  another 
pressure,  which  almost  tore  away  the  beams  protecting  the 
hull  and  the  davits  to  which  they  were  fastened.  The  ship, 
however,  rights  herself.  To-day  the  ice  which  overhung  our 
bulwarks  was  dug  away  to  prevent  masses  of  it  falling  on 
the  deck.  In  the  evening,  diminished  pressure  from  the 
ice ;  at  night,  glorious  moonlight  scenery ;  nothing  more 


io8  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

-p~. 

peaceful,  but  nothing  more  illusive,  than  such  a  scene  at  such 
an  hour. 

"  October  17. — All  quiet  during  the  night  till  Lusina  came 
to  announce,  with  a  voice  as  from  the  grave,  that  the  ship  was 
making  more  water,  sixteen  inches  in  the  forepart,  eleven 
inches  amidships.  East  wind,  with  heavy  drifting  snow-storms 
— during  the  day  once  only  a  strain  of  short  duration  was 
felt  in  the  ship,  as  a  new  fissure  opened  in  the  piled-up  ice  on 
our  starboard  quarter. 

"  October  18. — Our  anxieties  somewhat  abate  and  our  watch- 
ful state  of  preparation  to  leave  the  ship  relaxes,  and  most 
of  us  determine  once  more  to  undress  for  the  night.  After 
several  weeks  the  sun,  which  had  been  obscured  by  the 
weather,  becomes  visible,  rising  2°  25'  above  the  horizon  ;  the 
temperature  stands  at  -  20°  R,  and  our  latitude  is  77°  48'. 

"  October  19. — Straining  in  the  ship  ;  the  sun  rose  about  a 
quarter  past  eight,  but  was  soon  veiled  in  frosty  vapours. 

"  October  20. — The  hull  of  the  ship  is  still  without  its 
necessary  protection  of  ice  and  snow,  while  we  are  wrapt  in 
furs  and  wear  reindeer-shoes  and  felt-boots.  In  the  evening 
a  faint  mock  moon  was  visible. 

"  October  21. — At  night  we  were  alarmed  by  a  loud  sound, 
and  in  few  minutes  all  were  on  deck  with  their  fur  clothes  on 
— a  fissure  had  opened  on  the  starboard  side  of  the  ship,  con- 
necting itself  with  that  which  had  been  formed  astern  of  the 
ship.  In  an  hour  this  fissure  had  widened  about  four  feet, 
and  we  worked  for  some  hours  by  the  light  of  lamps  to  fill  it 
up  with  snow  and  pieces  of  ice.  The  low  temperature  ( — 21° 
F.)  led  us  to  expect  that  this  chasm  would  be  bridged  over 
without  further  effort  on  our  part.  The  moon  stood  surrounded 
by  a  vast  halo  in  the  heavens  an'd  illuminated  the  awful  loneli- 
ness of  our  abode.  Once  more  a  calm!  When  any  one  comes 
down  from  the  deck  into  the  cabin,  the  eyes  of  all  are 
involuntarily  turned  upon  him. to  read  in  the  expression  of 
his  face  what  is  going  on  above,  and  each  dreads  to  hear  it 
said,  that  the  ice  is  in  motion*.  In  the  afternoon,  when  the 
fissure  closed,  we  heard  the  old  dull  sound  from  the  ice,  and 
the  ship  strained  violently,  and  all  were  on  deck  ready  to 
leave.  About  nine  o'clock  in  the  evening  the  motion  of  the 
ice  was  again  felt.  Uncertain  and  full  of  fears  as  to  what  the 


THE    MOON    WITH    ITS    HALO. 


i io  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

night  might  bring  forth,  we  go  early  to  rest ;  no  one  knows 
how  short  that  rest  maybe.  Even  Klotz  lays  aside  his  stoical 
calmness,  and  the  philosophical  dignity  of  his  remarks  departs 
when  his  comrades  spring  from  their  berths  and  rush  on  deck 
with  their  bundles.  The  frozen  pumps  are  daily  thawed  by 
boiling  water  ;  to-day  the  shaft  of  one  of  them  broke,  through 
the  excessive  strain  put  upon  it. 

"  October  22. — During  the  night,  motion  in  the  ice.  At 
9.30  A.M.  the  sun  rose,  and  attains  its  meridian  altitude  at 
i°  41'.  In  the  evening  the  fissure  in  the  ice  again  opens. 
Rents  and  small  '  ice-holes '  are  all  round  us,  and  frosty 
vapour  fills  the  air.  To-day  the  skull  of  a  bear  was  thrown 
out  on  the  ice,  the  crew  asserting  that  mischief  comes  from 
the  possession  of  it ! 

"  October  23. — During  the  night  violent  movement  in  the  ice; 
the  sound  produced  resembles  the  noise  of  a  fleet  of  paddle- 
wheel  steam-ships,  steaming  now  with  full,  now  with  half 
power.  The  height  of  the  sun  to-day  above  the  horizon  was 
a  little  above  one  degree,  its  form  was  distorted  by  refrac- 
tion into  an  egg-like  shape,  and  its  edges  were  in  constant 
vibration. 

"  October  24. — The  daylight  is  now  so  feeble  that  the  lamps 
have  to  be  lighted  during  the  day,  with  the  exception  of  two 
or  three  hours  in  the  forenoon.  Many  of  the  crew  are  suffer- 
ing from  frost-bites  on  their  hands,  in  consequence  of  their 
exposure  in  removing  the  unnecessary  rigging,  and  in  the 
preparations  to  facilitate  the  removal  of  our  stock  of  provisions 
in  the  event  of  our  being  forced  to  abandon  the  vessel. 

October  25. — In  the  afternoon  we  made  an  attempt  to  drive 
the  dog  sledges,  but  the  snow,  in  spite  of  the  low  temperature, 
lay  in  such  masses  between  the  small  hummocks  and  on  the 
few  level  places,  that  they  sank  deep  into  it.  It  is  storms  of 
wind  only  that  harden  the  snow,  and  for  some  time  we  have 
had  calms  or  light  breezes.  In  the  evening  there  was  a  move- 
ment in  the  ice  astern  of  the  ship,  accompanied  with  the 
highest  soprano  tones.  The  noise  the  ice  makes  in  its  pres- 
sure very  much  resembles  the  piping  and  howling  of  a  storm 
among  rocky  cliffs  or  through  the  rigging  of  a  ship.  About 
half-past  ten  at  night,  the  oscillating  movements  of  the  ice, 
occurring  at  definite  intervals,  made  it  appear  as  if  they  arose 


iv.]     THE  "TEGETTHOFF"  FAST  BESET  IN  THE  ICE.      in 

from  a  swell  of  the  ocean.  The  ship  groans  and  creaks  con- 
stantly ;  indeed,  creaking  and  groaning  are  weak  expressions 
for  such  a  noise.  Once  more  all  are  ready.  We  begin  to  fear 
that  the  ice  will  never  rest. 

"  October  26. — Pressure  throughout  the  whole  night.  Armed 
and  provided  with  lanterns,  we  used  the  sledges  to  remove 
two  boats,  150  logs  of  wood,  fifty  planks,  and  a  supply  of 
coals,  to  the  port  side  of  the  vessel,  and  chose  a  stronger  floe, 
on  which  to  build  a  house  of  refuge.  Tired  and  exhausted, 
we  fell  asleep,  in  spite  of  the  straining  and  creaking  of  the 
vessel. 

"  October  27. — The  sun  at  noon  was  scarcely  visible  above 
the  horizon.  At  night  of  the  same  day  a  strong  wind  from 
the  south-east  opened  a  fissure  on  the  starboard  side  of  the 


OUR   COAL-HOUSE   ON  THE   FLOE. 


vessel  and  about   150  paces   from   it,  which   grew  into  the 
dimensions  of  an  'ice-hole/ 

"  October  28. — To-day  the  sun  took  leave  of  us.  Only  with 
•its  upper  edge  had  it  appeared  above  the  horizon,  and  sent 
towards  us  its  mild  beams  like  the  consoling  glance  of  a 
departing  friend.  The  coal-house  is  finished.  But  what 
reliance  can  be  placed  on  such  an  abode  in  such  a  position  ? 
A  storm  may  carry  away  the  planks  which  form  its  roof; 
sparks  from  a  fire  may  set  fire  to  its  walls  and  consume  it ; 
and  at  any  moment,  through  a  pressure  opening  up  an  abyss 
beneath,  it  may  sink  and  be  engulfed.  Two  o'clock  in  the 


112  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

afternoon,  the  groaning  sound  comes  from  the  piles  of  ice 
around  us ;  our  floe  appears  to  twist  somewhat,  and  the 
pressure  of  the  ice  will  probably  soon  begin. 

"  October  29. — During  the  night  a  noise  in  the  ice,  which, 
though  it  did  not  further  disturb  us,  was  yet  witness  enough 
that  it,  is  ever  ready  to  disturb  us.  The  sun  no  longer 
appears;  only  a  rosy  light  at  noon  in  the  heavens. 

"  October  30. — At  half-past  three  o'clock  in  the  morning  there 
was  a  dreadful  straining  and  creaking  in  the  ship  :  at  once 
we  sprang  out  of  our  berths,  and  stood  on  deck  with  our  fur 
garments  on,  and  with  our  bags  as  before.  New  fissures  had 
appeared  which  rapidly  enlarge  themselves  ;  the  two  boats 
and  the  coal-house  are  now  surrounded  by  up-forced  masses 
of  ice  and  separated  from  us.  Then  a  pause  !  There  is  how- 
ever no  real  repose,  and  the  least  sound  on  deck,  the  falling 
of  anything  heavy — at  other  times  quite  unnoticed — alarms 
us  into  the  expectation  of  new  onsets.  At  noon,  as  we  sate 
at  dinner,  there  was  renewed  and  excessive  straining  in  the 
ship,  and  even  in  the  cabin  we  heard  such  a  rushing  sound  in 
the  ice  without,  that  it  seemed  as  if  the  whole  frozen  sea 
would  the  next  moment  boil  and  rise  in  vapour.  During  all 
the  afternoon  the  noise  continues,  and  all  the  fissures  send 
forth  dense  vapours,  like  hot  springs.  During  the  day  no 
quiet  for  reading  or  working,  and  every  night  almost  our 
sleep  is  disturbed  by  a  horrible  awaking  within  a  great 
creaking,  groaning  coffin.  Men  can  accustom  themselves  to 
almost  anything  ;  but  to  these  daily  recurring  shocks,  and 
the  constantly  renewed  question  as  to  the  end  and  issue  of 
it  all,  we  cannot  grow  accustomed." 

8.  There  is  however  such  an  intolerable  monotony  in  my 
diary,  that,  to  spare  my  readers,  I  thus,  in  a  few  words, 
resuming  its  contents,  describe  our  situation  : — "  One  of  us, 
to-day,  remarked  very  truly,  that  he  saw  perfectly  well  how 
one  might  lose  his  reason  with  the  continuance  of  these 
sudden  and  incessant  assaults.  It  is  not  dangers  that  we  fear, 
but  worse  far ;  we  are  kept  in  a  constant  state  .of  readiness 
to  meet  destruction,  and  know  not  whether  it  will  come 
to-day,  or  to-morrow,  or  in  a  year.  Every  night  we  are 
startled  out  of  sleep,  and,  like  hunted  animals,  up  we  spring 
to  await  amid  an  awful  darkness  the  end  of  an  enterprise 


IV.]     THE^TEGETTHOFF"  FAST  BESET  IN  THE  ICE.      113. 

from  which  all  hope  of  success  has  departed.  It  becomes  at 
last  a  mere  mechanical  process  to  seize  our  rifles  and  our  bag 
of  necessaries  and  rush  on  deck.  In  the  daytime,  leaning 
over  the  bulwarks  of  the  ship,  which  trembles,  yea,  almost 
quivers  the  while,  we  look  out  on  a  continual  work  of  destruc- 
tion going  on,  and  at  night,  as  we  listen  to  the  loud  and 
ever-increasing  noises  of  the  ice,  we  gather  that  the  forces  of 
our  enemy  are  increasing." 


. 


CHAPTER  V. 

OUR  FIRST   WINTER   (18/2)   IN   THE  ICE. 

I.  IN  the  beginning  of  November  we  were  already  environed 
by  a  deep  twilight ;  but  our  dreary  waste  had  become  of 
magical  beauty  ;  the  rigging,  white  with  frost,  stood  out, 
spectre-like,  against  the  grey-blue  of  the  heavens  ;  the  ice, 
broken  into  a  thousand  forms  and  overspread  with  a  covering 
of  snow,  had  now  assumed  the  cold  pure  aspect  of  alabaster 
shaded  with  the  tender  hues  of  arragonite.  Southward  at 
noon  we  saw  veils  of  frosty  vapour  rise  into  the  carmine- 
coloured  sky  out  of  the  fissures  and  "  ice-holes,"  in  which  the 
water  seemed  to  boil. 

2.  All  our  preparations  for  wintering  had  now  been 
completed.  Lieutenant  Weyprecht  struck  the  top-masts  to 
diminish  pressure  from  the  wind ;  some  sails  were  still  kept 
set,  in  order  that  the  ship,  in  the  event  of  her  being  set  free, 
might  at  once  get  under  weigh.  The  fore-part  of  the  ship 
only  could  be  covered  in  as  a  tent,  for  the  preparations  to 
abandon  her  in  case  of  need  compelled  us  to  leave  her  after- 
part  uncovered..  There,  in  perfect  order,  lay  all  the  materials 
we  meant  to  take  with  us,  our  provisions,  ammunition,  tents, 
sledges,  &c.  The  ship  was  surrounded  with  a  wall  of  snow 
and  ice,  which  we  constantfy  restored,  whenever  it  was  injured 
by  pressure  from  without,  and  her  deck  was  gradually  over- 
spread with  a  mantle  of  snow,  which  contributed,  however,  to 
maintain  an  equable  warmth  in  the  ship.  Our  distance  from 
land  rendered  it  impossible  to  cover  the  deck  with  a  layer  of 
sand,  which  would  have  prevented  the  melting  of  the  snow 
from  the  warmth  of  the  ship. 


CHAP.v.J  OUR  FIRST  WINTER  IN  THE  ICE.  115 

3.  The  temperature  of  November  rose  once  only— about 
the  middle  of  the  month— considerably ;  but,  except  on  that 
occasion,  the  thermometer  stood  with  tolerable  regularity 
below  -'13°  F.,  and  on  the  2Oth  of  the  month  it  reached  its 
minimum  at  -  33°  F.  Winds,  from  whatever  quarter  they 
might  blow,  constantly  raised  the  temperature,  because  the 
colder  air  was  thus  modified  by  the  warmer  which  lay  above 


I 


ft; 


THE   TWILIGHT    IN    NOVKMBKR,    1872. 

the  open  spaces  of  sea-water;  calms  were  accompanied  by 
a  rapid  intensification  of  cold.  Wind,  increased  drifting, 
pressure,  and  the  formation  of  fissures — all  these  are  naturally 
connected.  New  openings  were  quickly  covered  with  young 
ice,  which  presented  a  smooth  surface  when  formed  by  less 
intense  cold,  but  when  the  temperature  fell  lower,  its  saline 
contents  were  exuded  in  a  moist,  tough  layer,  which  lay  on 
its  surface  about  an  inch  thick.  In  this  state  of  the  ice,  sledge- 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP.  v. 


travelling  was  rendered  more  difficult,  and  even  walking  was 
far  from  easy ;  for  it  is  only  under  a  temperature  ranging 
from  -  4°  F.  to  -  13°  F.  that  this  layer  is  frozen.  The  inces- 
sant rending  of  the  ice-sheet,  by  exposing  the  warmer  surface 
of  the  sea,  tends  to  mitigate .  the  cold,  while,  en  the  other 
hand,  the  freezing  of  these  fissures  augments  the  quantity 
of  ice. 

4.  In  the  beginning  of  the  month  our  nights  were  dark, 
and  it  was  only  occasionally  that  the  light  of  the  aurora  and 
meteors  visited  us  with  their  fleeting  splendours.  Although 


CH,\SI:D  HUN  A  i-ox. 


in  clear  weather  day  was  still  distinguishable  from  night,  yet 
the  darkness,  even  at  noon,  was  so  great,  that  mists  could  not 
be  seen,  but  felt  only,  and  it  was  no  longer  possible,  without 
the  light  of  a  lantern,  to  make  'even  the  slightest  sketch,  or  to 
take  aim  with  the  rifle.  Hence,  when  we  met  with  bears  we 
could  not  be  certain  of  our  aim,  if  they  were  at  any  distance 
from  us,  and,  on  one  occasion,  Sumbu  was  mistaken  for  a  fox, 
chased,  and  but  for  my  coming  up  would  have  been  shot. 


ii8  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 


5.  The  first  days  of  November  passed  away  without  any 
new  disturbance  from  the  movement  of  the  masses  of  ice, 
and  our  feeling  of  security  grew  apace,  and  with  it  pur  hopes 
revived,  never  again  to  leave  us  entirely,  not  even  when  the 
pressures  returned,  as  they  did  too  soon.     Once  more  the 
fields  of    ice,   firmly  pressed   together,    were   rent    asunder; 
fissures  opened  out,  and  shone  in  the  moonlight  like  rivers 
of  silver.     The  night  of  Nov.  20  was  one  of  extreme  anxiety. 
A  mountain  formed  of  piles  of  broken  ice  bore  down  on  us 
amid  a  fearful  din,  threatening  to  bury  the  ship.     Silent,  and 
conscious  of  our  utter  helplessness,  we  watched  this  gigantic 
heap  of  crashing  ice-tables  drifting  nearer  and  nearer,  crush- 
ing as  it  advanced  the  heaviest  pieces  of  ice  with  a  noise  which 
echoed  through  our  ship.     Escape  seemed   impossible  :  and 
Providence  alone  arrested  its  career.     This   night  the  crew 
received  each  an  extra  glass  of  grog  to  obliterate  the  impres- 
sion of  this  terrible  crisis. 

6.  With  the  exception  of  books,  we  had  no  other  amuse- 
ment than  short  expeditions,  never  extending  beyond  a  mile 
from  the  ship,  in  which  we  were  accompanied  by  all  the  dogs. 
We  generally  set  out  with  two  small  sledges,  and,  when  the 
moon  was  not  shining,  with  our  rifles  ready  to  fire,  for  the 
darkness  and  the  utter  absence  of  open  spaces  on  the  ice 
imposed  the  utmost  caution  against  bears.     At  a  very  short 
distance  we  could  see  nothing  of  the  ship,  and  only  by  our 
footsteps  on  the  snow  could  we  make  out  where  we  were  and 
find  the  way  back.     In  these  expeditions  we  were  exposed  to 
another  danger — the  risk  of  being  cut  off  from  the  ship  by  the 
breaking-up  of  one  of  the  drifting  floes.     Even  the  dogs  felt 
the  insecurity  of  recently-formed  ice,  and  put  their  feet  on  it 
with   fear  and  hesitation,  and  only  by  compulsion.     There 
seemed   to  be  a  cunning  agreement  among  them  to  shirk 
the  work  altogether  ;  for  they  often  rushed  away  into  the  coal- 
house,  and  threw  the  harness  of  the  sledges  into  inextricable 
confusion. 

7.  December  came,  but  it  brought  no  change  in  our  situa- 
tion. Our  life  became  more  and  more  monotonous ;  one 
day  differed  in  no  respect  from  another,  it  was  but  a  mere 
succession  of  dates,  and  time  was  reckoned  merely  by  the 
hours  for  eating  and  sleeping.  The  ice,  however,  did  not 


v.]  OUR  FIRST  WINTER  IN  THE  ICE.  119 

share  in  the  universal  repose.  It  was  never  weary  of  threat- 
ening ;  no  day  elapsed  without  movement  on  its  part.  My 
journal  records  December  I,  8,  9,  19,  20,  21,  24,  26,  28,  29,  30, 
and  31,  as  days  of  special  disturbance  and  agitation.  On  the 
2Oth,  as  we  were  talking  in  the  coal-house  of  the  approaching 
festival  of  Christmas,  a  sudden  violent  movement  of  the  ice 
surprised  us,  and  rushing  out  we  found  that  the  floe  on  which 
the  house  stood  was  breaking  up.  With  all  haste  we  endea- 
voured to  save  as  much  as  possible  of  the  coal  and  materials, 
and  moved  them  close  to  the  ship.  The  minimum  tem- 
perature of  December  was  —  26°  F. ;  the  mean  of  the  whole 
month  amounted  to  —  22°  F. ;  and  the  extreme  of  cold, 
-  33°  F.,  was  reached  on  the  26th.  A  few  days  before 
Christmas  the  temperature  rose  to  a  little  below  —  13°  F. 
It  may  be  observed  that  the  lower  temperatures  were 
registered  during  the  prevalence  of  winds  from  the  south- 
east, and  the  higher  during  winds  from  the  north. 

8.  When  the  moon  returned  in  the  middle  of  December, 
our  sledge  expeditions  were  extended  to  a  distance  of  ij  miles 
from  the  ship,  over  snow  and  hummocks,  to  recently  frozen 
ice-holes,  the  lonely  beauty  of  which,  edged  with  dark  masses 
of  ice,  in  the  distance,  and  lying  under  the  clear  silver  light  of 
the  moon,  filled  us  with  feelings  of  profound  melancholy.    On 
returning  from  one  of  these  expeditions  to  our  vessel,  after 
we   had    unharnessed  the  dogs,  we   heard  loud  barks  from 
Sumbu,  and  looking  round  saw  a  bear  close  beside  him,  which 
Orel  managed  to  shoot  dead  when  he  was  not  above  five 
paces  from  the  rope-ladder  on  the  port  side  of  the  vessel. 
He  was  at  once  cut  up,  the  dogs  meanwhile  looking  on  with 
profound  attention ;    and    in    reward    for   his    watchfulness, 
Sumbu  was  indulged   with  an  extra  good   feast — the  heart 

•  and  tongue  of  the  bear,  which,  as  yet,  we  ourselves  had  not 
learnt  to  eat  and  enjoy.  On  the  i8th,  however,  he  en- 
countered our  heavy  clispleasure  for  the  offence  of  frightening 
off  a  fox,  which  had  ventured  to  come  very  near  the  vessel. 

9.  When  there  was  no  moon  it  was  perfectly  dark,  even 
during  the  day;  but  on   December  14,  in  a  very  clear  fore- 
noon, we  saw  in  the  south  a  tender  orange  segment  of  light, 
three  or  four  degrees  above  the  horizon,  edged  with  green, 
sharply  defined  against  the  dark  sky,  and  when  the  moon, 


120 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP.  v. 


high  in  the  heavens,  faced  this  arch  of  light,  a  peculiar  faint 
twilight  was  observable.  But  generally  there  was  no  difference 
between  the  light  of  midday  and  the  light  of  midnight.  The 
heavens  were  usually  overcast,  and  the  light  of  the  aurora, 
during  the  few  minutes  of  its  greatest  intensity,  seldom  ex- 
ceeded that  of  the  moon  in  its  first  quarter.  But  how  deep 
\vould  be  the  night  of  the  Polar  regions,  if  the  land,  instead 
of  being  white  with  snow,  were  covered  with  forests!  On 
December  20  we  were  unable,  even  at  noon,  to  read  anything 
but  the  titles  of  books  of  the  largest  type ;  a  man's  eyes  were 


ENCOUNTER  WITH  A  POLAR  BEAR. 

Invisible  at  the  distance  of  a  few  paces,  and  at  fifty  even  the 
stoutest  ropes  of  the  ship  were  scarcely  discernible.  The 
effect  of  the  long  Polar  night — when  the  range  of  the  light 
of  a  lamp  is  the  whole  world  for  man — is  most  oppressive  to 
the  feelings  ;  nor  can  habit  ever  reconcile  those  who  have 
lived  under  the  influences  of  civilization  to  its  gloom  and 
solitude.  It  can  be  a  home  only  to  men  who  spend  their 
existence  in  eating  and  drinking  and  sleeping,  without  any 
disturbing  recollection  of  a  better  existence.  The  depression 


122  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

was  made  more  intense  by  the  consciousness  that  we  had 
been  driven  into  an  utterly  unknown  region  and  with  our  eyes 
bound.  Work,  incessant  work,  was  the  only  resource  in  these 
circumstances. 

10.  Again  from  my  journal    I   reproduce   some   passages 
which  express  the  feelings  which  passed  through  our  minds — 
through  mine  at  least — during  this  season  of  the  Tegetthoff's 
first  winter  in  the  ice: — "December   21 — The  middle  of  the 
long  night.     It  is  noon,  and,  though  nothing  can  be  lighter 
than  the  colour  of  all  that  surrounds  us — of  the  snow — yet  it 
is  as  dark  as  midnight.     Nothing  but  a  pale  yellow  sheen 
hovers  over  the  south.     The  sun  has  sunk  below  the  horizon- 
11°  40',  and  we  should  have  to  ascend   a  mountain  eighteen 
and  a  half  (German)  miles  high  in  order  to  behold  it.    Nothing 
is  to  be  seen,  neither  bears  nor  men,  and  we  only,  hear  the 
steps  of  those  who  are  near  us.     We  see  but  the  confused 
outline  even  of  the  ship,  as  she  drifts  hither  and  thither  with 
the  floe,  a  prisoner  in  the- fetters  of  the  ice,  the  sport  of  winds 
and  currents,  carrying  her  further  and  further  into  the  still  and 
silent  realm  of  death.     A  definite  object,  with  hope  to  inspire 
them,  raises  men  above  toils  and  troubles  of  every  kind  ;  but 
exile  like  ours,  when  the  sacrifice  seems  useless,  is  hard  to  be 
borne.     An  inexorable  *  No  '  lays  its  ban  on  every  hope,  and 
daily  struggle  for  self-preservation  is  our  lot.     If  we  attempt 
to  fathom  destiny,  our  utmost  hopes  are  liberation  from  our 
icy  captivity  some  time  next  summer,  and  the  reaching  the 
coast  of  Siberia.     Siberia  a  hope !     And  yet  how  changeable 
are  the  feelings  when  the  reign  of  monotony  is  interrupted  ! 
The  moon  is  up — darkness  exists  no  more.     In  the  North  the 
moon  is  an  event — it  is  life,  everything  almost ;  it  is  the  only 
link  which  connects  us  with  the  far-distant  home.      As  its 
beams  fall  on  the  meanest  forms,  diamonds  blaze  forth  in  its 
light  from  the  snow  and  the  frost,  and  the  soul  feels  the  beauty 
of  the  transformation.     She  looks  down  on  us  like  a  returning 
friend  that  watches  over  us,  and  unfolds  bewitching  forms  and 
magic  images  to  cheer  us.     Two  weeks  ago  she  rose  above  the 
horizon,  first  as  a  blood-red  disk,  then  paled  as  she  climbed 
higher  and  higher,  till  she  stands  out  the  clear,  silver-bright, 
full  moon." 

1 1 .  Christmas  had  come  ;  the  season  when  in  the  forests  of 


V.]  OUR  FIRST  WINTER  IN  THE  ICE.  123 

our  far-distant  home  the  branches  of  the  pine-trees  are  heavy 
laden  with  snow,  and  which  ever  comes  back  with  the  memories 
of  the  days  of  our  youth,  and  with  the  remembrances  of  our 
families  and  absent  friends.  Only  for  a  short  time,  about 
noon,  we  were  made  uneasy  by  a  movement  and  pressure  of 
the  ice.  '  But  the  alarm  passed  away,  and  we  gathered  to- 
gether for  a  choice  and  gorgeous  feast,  both  on  Christmas  Eve 
and  Christmas  Day,  and  each  of  the  cabin-mess  had  a  bottle 
of  good  wine  to  himself.  Carlsen  and  Lusina  were  our  guests. 
Each  of  the  crew  received  half  a  bottle  of  wine,  together  with 
a  quarter  of  a  bottle  of  "  artificial  wine,"  l  and  in  addition  an 
allowance  of  grog,  so  weak,  however,  that  even  a  baby  might 
have  drunk  it  without  harm.  Dried  fish,  roast  bear  well  kept 
and  seasoned,  nuts  and  the  like,  contributed  in  their  way 
to  heighten  the  joyous  feelings  which,  this  day  at  least, 
animate  even  the  most  miserable  of  men.  The  dogs,  at  other 
times  so  insatiable,  had  for  once  enough  and  to  spare,  and 
carried  off  the  fragments  to  bury  them  in  the  snow.  The 
contents  of  a  chest  full  of  presents,  which  we  had  brought 
with  us,  were  distributed  by  lot,  and  great  was  the  delight  of 
those  who  won  a  bottle  of  rum  or  a  few  cigars. 

12.  The  last  day  of  the  ye|r  1872  afforded  us  no  very 
happy  thoughts  as  we  looked  back  on  its  events ;  it  had  been 
to  us  a  year  of  disappointments.  The  comparison  drawn 
between  our  actual  condition  and  the  expectations  we  had  so 
ardently  cherished  seemed  full  of  the  bitterest  irony.  This 
day  also,  about  noon,  a  pressure  from  the  ice,  which  lasted  but 
a  short  time,  alarmed  us  all,  and  we  rushed  on  deck  to  make 
our  usual  preparations.  The  enemy,  however,  passed  away 
without  further  disturbance,  and  cheerfully  and  socially  we 
awaited  the  first  hour  of  the  new  year.  With  a  bottle  of 
"champagne,  one  of  the  two  still  left,  we  meant  to  greet  its 
coming  in  with  that  hopefulness  of  mind  which  seems  inex- 
tinguishable in  all  the  changes  and  chances  of  life.  But  the 
champagne,  alas !  proved  a  delusion.  Klotz,  the  Tyrolese,  in 
one  of  his  brown  studies  exposed  this  precious  bottle  for  four 
hours  to  a  temperature  of  — 19°  F.,  and  when  he  produced  it 
the  bottle  had  burst  and  the  wine  was  thoroughly  frozen.  At 
midnight  the  crew  serenaded  us,  and  we  afterwards  marched 

1  A  decoction  prepared  by  Kepes. 


124 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


forth  in  a  body  with  torches,  and  walked  round  the  ship,  whose 
rigging  glowed  in  the  light  of  the  tarred  torches.  The  frosted 
fur  garments  of  the  men  seemed  edged  with  shining  light,  and 
a  red  glare  fell  on  the  masses  of  ice. 

13.  To-day,  too,  we  allowed  the  dogs  to  descend  into  our 
cabin, — the  constant  object  of  their  longings.  The  poor 
animals  were  so  dazzled  by  looking  at  our  lamp,  that  they 
almost  took  it  for  the  sun  itself;  but  by  and  by  their  attention 


CARLSEN    MAKES   THE    ENTRY    IN   THE    LOG. 


was  directed  exclusively  to  the  rich  remains  of  our  dinner,  the 
sight  of  which  appeared  completely  to  satisfy  their  notions  of 
the  wonders  of  the  cabin.  After  behaving  themselves  with 
great  propriety,  they  again  quietly  withdrew,  all  except 
Jubinal,  who  appeared  to  be  indignant  at  the  deceitfulness  of 
our  conduct,  inasmuch  as  we  had  allowed  him  to  starve  so 
long  on  dried  horse-flesh  and  on  crushed-  bear's  head,  while 
we  revelled  in  luxury.  He  accordingly  made  his  way  into 
Lieutenant  Brosch's  cabin,  where,  discovering  a  mountain  of 
macaroni,  he  immediately  attacked  it,  and  warned  us  off  from 
every  attempt  to  rescue  it,  by  growling  fiercely  till  he  had 


V.]  OUR  FIRST  WINTER  IN  THE  ICE.  125 

finished  it  all.  Sumbu,  however,  with  much  levity,  suffered 
himself  to  be  made  drunk  by  the  sailors  with  rum,  and  every- 
thing which  he  had  scraped  together  for  weeks  and  buried  in 
the  snow  and  so  carefully  watched,  was  stolen  from  him  by 
the  other  dogs  in  one  night. 

14.  Another  year  had  now  glided  away.  Looking  anxiously 
into  the  future,  we  shortsighted  mortals  saw  the  fulfilment 
of  our  highest  wishes  in  being  liberated  from  the  floe.  In  the 
pious  manner  of  the  whalers  of  the  Arctic  Ocean,  Carlsen 
wrote  this  day  in  the  log  :  "  Onsker  at  Gud  maa  vere  med  os 
i  det  nye  aar,  da  kan  intet  vare  imod  os — May  God  be  with 
us  in  the  new  year  and  nothing  can  be  against  us"  In  this  new 
year,  with  its  happier  issues,  was  verified  again  the  eternal 
truth,  that  Providence  acts  in  ways  not  to  be  fathomed,  and 
that  it  is  folly  in  man  to  mark  out  h^  own  path  beforehand 
according  to  his  own  mind.  The  sun  of  this  new  year,  whose 
beams  were  to  light  us  to  new  lands  and  discoveries,  was  still 
low  beneath  the  horizon. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

LIFE  ON   BOARD   THE   "  TEGETTHOFF." 

I .  LIKE  a  spectre  in  white,  the  ship  stretches  out  her  arms,  as 
if  in  silent  complaint,  towards  the  heaven,  and  rests,  in  cruel 
mockery  of  her  destiny,  on  a  mountain,  not  of  water,  but  of 
ice,  and  seems  like  a  building  ready  to  fall  in.  A  wall  of 
snow  and  ice  surrounds  her  hull,  snow  lies  thick  on  her  deck, 
and  her  rigging  is  stiffened  in  icy  lines.  Could  we  see  through 
her  sides,  we 'should  then  behold  four-and-twenty  men  parted 
off  in  two  spaces  under  the  suns  of  two  lamps.  Let  its  inspect 
them,  and  first  the  cabin  of  the  officers  in  the  after-part  of  the 
ship. 

2.  Neither  few  nor  slight  were  our  struggles  to  remedy  the 
various  inconveniences  which  we  encountered  ;  their  enumera- 
tion here  is  meant  to  aid  the  experience  of  future  adventurers. 
Though  our  arrangements  were  far  from  complete  or  perfect, 
we  had  never  to  complain  of  the  discomforts  which  previous 
expeditions,  even  the  second  German  expedition  to  Greenland, 
had  to  endure  from  the  excessive  condensation  of  moisture. 
Against  this  enemy  we  protected  ourselves  by  the  snow  wall 
which  we  raised  round  the  ship,  by  covering  in  the  deck 
windows  of  the  cabin,  by  lining  our  quarters  with  vulcanized 
india-rubber,  by  sheds  built  over  the  cabin  stairs,  all  acting  as 
condensers.  Before,  however,  I  enter  on  the  unavoidable  in- 
conveniences to  which  we  were  exposed  by  the  formation  of 
ice,  or  by  damp  and  the  sudden  change  of  temperature,  I 
would  preface  my  remarks  by  observing,  that  all  these  dis- 
comforts and  inconveniences  are  to  be  endured  far  more  easily 
than  would  seem  possible  to  the  reader,  and  that  life  on  board 
a  ship  of  a  North  Pole  expedition,  under  normal  circumstances, 
is  free  from  annoyances  worthy  of  mention. 


CHAP.vi.J     LIFE  ON  BOARD  THE  "TEGETTHOFF."  127 

3.  It  is  a  matter  of  the  last  importance  to  keep  tne  air  pure 
and  wholesome,  and  to  maintain  an  equable  warmth  in  the 
quarters  of  the  officers  and  crew.  The  accumulation  of 
moisture  and  consequent  congelation  in  them  is  an  incon- 
venience which  requires  incessant  watchfulness  to  avert.1 
The  destruction  of  the  snow  wall  which  surrounded  the  ship 
increased  the  condensation  ;  for  that  snow  covering  was 
nothing  but  a  greatcoat  for  the  ship  and  those  on  board.  In 
the  beginning  of  November  1872  the  frost  on  the  bulk-heads 
of  the,  berths,  and  on  those  parts  of  the  cabins  which  were 


-     ~    -  --    -    .  , 


T.HE  "TEGETTHOFF"  IN  THE  FULL  MOON. 

impervious  to  warmer  air,  was  very  perceptible.  The  bed- 
clothes were  frozen  at  night  to  the  sides  of  the  ship,  the  iron 
knees  of  the  beams — not,  alas  !  covered  with  felt — gleamed 
like  stalactites,  small  glaciers  were  formed  under  the  berths, 
and  even  in  October  the  skylight  was  frozen,  inches  thick. 
Every  rise  in  the  temperature  caused  this  formation  of  ice 
to  fall  down  like  a  "  douche,"  and  with  the  opening  of  a 
door  a  white  vapour,  even  in  October,  streamed  along  the 
deck.  We  prevented  the  increase  of  moisture  by  cutting  the 
openings  in  the  deck,  over  which  we  placed  two  chimneys, 
each  a  foot  high  and  covered  with  a  thin  metal  cap.  We 
boarded  up  the  skylight,  leaving  a  lid  by  which  to  air  the 

1  Parry  mentions,  as  a  fact  illustrative  of  the  increase  of  moisture  and  its  con 
•densation  into  ice,  that  about  a  hundred  hundredweights  of  ice  were  once  removed 
from  the  lower  quarters  of  the  Hecla,  which  had  accumulated  there  from  the  breath, 
the  steam  caused  by  cooking,  and  the  moisture  brought  down  by  the  clothes  of 
the  men. 


128  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

cabin.  But  in  spite  of  all  this  the  variations  of  temperature 
within  our  quarters  were  extraordinary.  If  the  heat  of  the 
air  in  the  middle  of  the  cabin  and  on  a  level  with  our  heads 
rose  from  — 2°  F.  to  76°  F. — our  usual  mean  temperature — 
it  amounted  on  the  floor  to  a  little  above  34°  F.,  and  fell 
during  the  night  not  unfrequently  below  freezing-point. 

4.  But  the  greatest  inconvenience  perhaps  with  which  we  had 
to  contend,  arose  from  the  removal  of  the  protection  of  the 
tent  roof,  which  was  stretched  over  the  after-part  of  the  ship. 
The  want  of  this  prevented  our  walking  on  the  deck  in   bad 
weather,  and  it  also  hindered  perfect  ventilation,  which  could 
only  be  secured,  with  the  constant  heat  which  was  maintained 
below,  by  keeping  the  deck  windows  open.     Warming  the  air 
from  underneath  the   floor   of  the  cabin  would  possibly  be 
preferable  to  the  best  stove.     We  had  the  stove  of  Meidingen 
of  Carlsruhe,  the  excellence  of  which  had  been  tested  on  the 
Germania.     This  stove  consumed  only  20  Ibs.  of  coals  daily, 
with   a  thermometer  at — 13°  F.,  and  after  the  adoption   of 
certain    arrangements    to    save    the    fuel,    its     consumption 
amounted  to  only  12  Ibs.     Even  in  the  coldest  period  of  the 
winter  we  never  consumed  more  than  4^  cwt.   in  a   month. 
The  lighting  of  the  messroom  and  quarters  of  the  men  was 
effected    by    petroleum,   the    daily   consumption    of    which 
amounted  to  about  2§  Ibs.     Altogether  there  were  in  the  ship 
two  large   and   two   small  lamps,  besides   the  deck-lantern, 
which  were  burning  day  and  night.     The  berths  were  lighted 
with  train-oil  ;  for  special  purposes,  such  as  drawing,  candles 
were  used. 

5.  The  stove  had  one  troublesome  enemy  in  the  shape  of  a 
hole,  as  big  as  a  man's  head,  in  the  door  of  the   mess-room, 
through  which  a  cold  stream  of  air  poured  itself ;  and  as  the 
ship  dipped  forward  considerably,  and  the  hearth  was   only 
about  a  foot  above  the  floor  of  the  mess-room,  this  stream 
filled  the  whole  space  with  a  lake  of  cold  air  from  three  to 
four  feet  deep.     Hence,  while  in  the  berth  close  by  the  stove 
there  was  a  temperature  ranging-  between  100°  F.  and  131°  F., 
in  the  other,  there  was  one  which  would  have  sufficed  for  the 
North  Pole  itself.     In  the  former  a  hippopotamus  would  have 
felt  himself  quite  comfortable,  and  Orel,  the  unhappy  occu- 
pant of  it,  was  often  compelled  to  rush  on  deck,  when  the 


vr.]  LIFE  ON  BOARD  THE  "  TEGETTHOFF."  129 

ice-pressures  alarmed  us,  experiencing  in  passing  from  his 
berth  to  the  deck  a  difference  of  temperature  amounting  to 
189°  F.  In  the  other  berth  of  the  mess-room,  water,  lemon- 
juice,  and  vinegar  froze  on  the  floor.  Those  who  occupied  it, 
as  they  lay  in  beds,  or  those  who  sat  at  the  table  to  read,  were 
in  a  cold  bath  reaching  up  to  their  neck.  But  the  hole  was 
an  indispensable  necessity,  for  it  was  better  to  endure  the  dis- 
comfort even  of  such  a  draught  than  to  impede  ventilation. 
Other  causes,  too,  disturbed  the  equilibrium  of  temperature. 
At  night  the  stove  was  sometimes,  from  sanitary  considera- 
tions, not  lighted,  and  then  all  had  to  sleep  in  that  cold  bath. 
With  the  increase  of  cold  and  wind,  our  inconveniences  often 
assumed  somewhat  ludicrous  forms.  Some  passages  from  my 
journal  will  make  this  clear: — "When  any  come  below  the 
temperature  falls.  If  the  door  be  opened  there  rolls  in  a 
mass  of  white  vapour;  if  any  one  opens  a  book  which  he  has 
brought  with  him,  it  smokes  as  if  it  were  on  fire.  A  cloud 
surrounds  those  that  enter,  and  if  a  drop  of  water  falls  on 
their  clothes,  it  is  at  once  converted  into  ice,  even  at  the  stove. 
Frequently  the  upper  stratum  of  air  in  the  mess-room  becomes 
so  heated,  that  the  deck  light  has  to  be  opened,  and  then  it 
rises  up,  like  smoke  out  of  a  chimney,  to  blend  itself  with  the 
cold  air  without." 

6.  The  arrangements  of  the  officers'  mess-room  are  simple 
and  in  harmony  with  its  purpose.  Here  stands  a  large  table, 
used  for  study  and  for  meals  ;  the  smaller  berths,  where  the 
officers  sleep,  are  round  the  sides  of  the  mess-room — just 
large  enough  to  enable  a  man  to  breathe  in.  There,  in  a 
recess  between  two  pillars,  an  untold  resource,  the  library  (of 
about  400  volumes,  chiefly  scientific)  ;  close  beside  it  the 
chronometers ;  and  lastly,  the  inevitable  evils,  the  medical 
stores,  ranged  round  the  mast.  By  the  side  of  scientific 
works  stand  Petermann's  Mittheilungen ;  and  between  Milton's 
Paradise  Lost  and  Shakespeare's  immortal  works,  a  whole 
tribe  of  romances,  which  were  read  with  never-tiring  delight. 
Our  instruments,  too,  frosted  with  ice,  are  here,  and  a  chest 
containing  our  journals.  Once  a  month  a  cask,  filled  with 
wine — the  chemical  wine — concocted  of  snow,  alcohol,  tannin, 
sugar,  and  glycerine,  was  placed  there.  Dr.  Kepes  was  not 
only  our  physician,  but  our  wine  brewer.  One  thing  more  we 


130  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

have  to  mention,  which,  alas !  incommoded  us  much  too  little 
— wine ;  that  is,  wine  made  in  Austria,  from  grapes.  As  we 
have  already  mentioned,  the  want  of  room  in  the  cabin  pre- 
vented our  laying  in  a  large  stock,  and  the  supplies  we  had 
were  frozen  in  a  cellar  below  the  mess-room,  about  the  middle 
of  December,  for  the  temperature  of  even  this  place  was 
about  1 6°  F.  or  14°  F.  Each,  however,  had  a  bottle  of  rum 
as  an  allowance  for  eighteen  days.  But  quite  inexhaustible 
was  the  supply  of  our  common  drink — melted  snow — a  great 
jar  of  which,  filled  to  the  brim,  stood  always  on  the  table. 
Under  the  cabin  were  our  supplies  of  alcohol  and  petroleum, 
accessible  only  by  well-fitting  pipes,  but  possible  volcanoes  as 
far  as  our  safety  was  concerned.  From  the  accumulation  of 
so  many  combustible  materials,  together  with  20,000  cart- 
ridges, and  with  several  lamps  constantly  burning,  it  is  clear 
that  the  danger  of  fire  was  great.  But  once  only  had  we  an 
alarm  from  this  source — when  Carlsen  caused  us  much  trepi- 
dation by  accidentally  discharging  a  rifle  in  the  cartridge 
magazine. 

7.  Let  us  now  turn  to  the  persons  who  occupied  this  mess- 
room.       Marola,    the   steward,  lights  the  lamp,  and   kindles 
the    fire,  and  awakens  those  who    were  not  already  awoke 
by  the  smoke  from  the  stove,  with  the  cry,  "  Signori,  le  sette 
e  tre  quarti,  prego  d'alzarsi  ; "  and  after  a  pause  of  a  quarter 
of  an  hour,  during  which  the  sleepers  seem  carefully  to  deny 
their    existence,    he  startles  this    silence  of   indifference   by 
the  second  call :  "  Colazion'  in  tavola."     Out  of  every  berth 
now  comes  forth  its  occupant,  each  in  picturesque  costume ; 
costumes  teach  us  how  superficial  after  all  is  civilization  in 
man ! 

8.  The  day's  work  begins.     The  watch,  as  ever,  walks  the 
deck,  lest  the  ice  should  slip  away  from  the  world  unobserved ; 
in  the  mess-room  meanwhile  calculations  or  drawing  or  writing 
are  in  full  operation.     Our  daily  meals  consist  of  a  break- 
fast of  cocoa,  biscuit,  and  butter ;  of  a  dinner  of  soup,  boiled 
beef,  preserved  vegetables,  and  cafe  noir ;  and  of  tea  in  the 
evening,  with  hard  biscuit,  butter,  cheese,  and  ham.     I  would 
recommend  potage  instead  of  tea  for  the  evening  meal  to  all 
future  expeditions.     Many  of  the  articles  of  food  must  be 
thawed  before  the  process  of  cooking  begins,  the  greater  part 


VI.J 


LIFE  ON  BOARD  THE  "TEQETTHOFF.' 


of  the  provisions  being  frozen  as  hard  as  iron.  The  tins  witn 
preserved  meat  stand  for  hours  in  boiling  water,  and  the 
things  for  supper  on  the  cabin  stove,  in  order  to  be  thawed. 
A  plate  of  cheese  that  steams,  butter  as  hard  as  a  stone, 
which  has  thrown  off  the  salt  it  contained  in  great  lumps 
from  the  action  of  frost,  a  ham  as  hard  as  the  never-thawed 
ground  of  the  Tundra  of  Siberia,  form  an  icy  repast,  specially 
if  we  use  knives,  which  are  so  cold  that  they  often  break 
with  the  least  exertion  of  force.  I  will  here  notice  the 
sanitary  importance — insisted  on  by  Parry  and  Ross — of 
fresh  bread,  which  the  cook  in  an  Arctic  ship  should  be 
able  to  bake  about  twice  a  week.  On  board  the  Tegetthoff 


DIVINE   SERVICE   ON    DECK. 


we  used  at  first  Liebig's  "  baking-powder,"  but  this  from 
being  kept  too  long  gave  such  a  disagreeable  taste  to  the 
bread,  that  we  gave  it  up  and  contented  ourselves  with  a 
defective  leaven. 

9.  Every  Sunday  at  noon  we  celebrated  Divine  Service. 
Under  the  shelter  of  the  deck-tent,  the  Gospel  was  read 
to  the  little  band  of  Christians  gathered  together  by  the 
sound  of  the  ship's  bell,  in  all  that  grave  simplicity  which 


132  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 


marked  the  worship  of  the  early  Christian  Church.  The 
Service  over,  we  then  sat  down  to  the  Sunday  dinner,  which 
was  graced  by  a  glass  of  wine  and  cake.  Carlsen  and 
Lusina  were  our  guests  by  turns.  Carlsen  always  appeared 
in  his  wig,  trimmed  with  extra  care,  and  on  the  high  festivals 
of  the  Church  decorated  also  with  the  cross  of  the  order 
of  St.  Olaf.  Lusina,  our  excellent-  boatswain,  was  ready  to 
talk  with  enthusiasm  on  any  subject  whatever,  prefacing  his 
stream  of  words  with  some  sententious  remark  or  with  some 
far-fetched  introduction.  During  our  meals  the  conversation 
turned  on  our  plans  for  the  future  ;  we  talked  of  Polar  bears  ; 
we  discussed  the  question  of  the  existence  of  Gillis'  Land 
and  the  possibility  of  our  reaching  Siberia  ;  but  very  seldom 
did  we  venture  to  speak  of  what  filled  the  minds  of  all — 
our.  captivity  in  the  ice.  Political  combinations  formed  a 
favourite  theme ;  and  as  we  had  some  old  numbers  of  the 
Neue  Frei  Presse  on  board,  they  furnished  an  inexhaustible 
source  of  topics  for  conversation.  The  events  of  the  year 
1870  were  related  as  the  latest  news,  and  we  thought  anxiously 
of  the  issue  of  the  war  between  Germany  and  France, 
and  feared  lest  Austria  should  be  compelled  to  take  part 
in  it. 

10.  After  dinner  came  the  hour  for  contemplation  ;  in  our 
lonely  berths  and  by  the  side  of  our  beds  we  sat  down  to 
brood — to  listen  to  our  watches  beating  seconds.  The 
English  Arctic  expeditions,  during  the  long  period  of  their 
enforced  leisure,  found  a  great  source  of  amusement  and 
distraction  in  theatricals.  But  the  ships  of  these  expeditions 
had  far  larger  crews  than  the  Tegetthoff,  and  the  men  could 
be  more  easily  spared  for  these  recreations.  But  there  were 
other  reasons  why  we  could  not  think  of  following  the  ex- 
ample of  the  English.  Our  situation  during  the  first  winter 
was  far  too  serious  for  such  things,  and  no  other  place  for  the 
theatre  was  at  our  disposal  except  the  barricaded  deck ; 
and  we  should  have  had  to  sit  there  with  a  thermometer 
marking  from  25°  to  37°  of  cold,  on  the  centigrade  scale, 
and  see  how  the  actors  and  the  audience  suddenly  rubbed 
their  frost-bitten  feet  with  snow !  There  was  one  other 
potent  reason  for  this  renunciation — our  performances  must 
have  been  in  four  different  languages. 


vi.]  LIFE  ON  BOARD  THE  "TEGETTHOFF."  133 


11.  Monotonous  beyond   all  monotony  is  life  in  the  long 
night  of  a  Polar  winter,  and  exile  can  never  on  earth  be  so 
entire  as  here  under  the  dreadful  triumvirate — darkness,  -cold, 
and  solitude.     In  such  a  life,  the  man  who  surrenders  himself 
to  idleness,  or  even  to  sleeping  during  the  day,  must  neces- 
sarily be  utterly  demoralized.     In  fact,  nothing  can  be  more 
destructive  to  an  expedition  wintering  in  the  Arctic  regions 
than  the  indulgence  of  mental  or  bodily  lassitude.     The  real 
ground  of  the  failure  of  the  attempts  made  in  earlier  times 
to  winter  in  Jan  Mayen  and  other  places  in  the  far  North  was 
probably   the  utter  want   of   discipline.     There  is,  however, 
a  widely  spread,  though  mistaken  view,  that  the  long  day 
of    Polar   lands   is   oppressive   to   man.      Nothing   is   more 
untrue ;    for   not  continual  light,  but   constant   darkness,  is 
distressing.     Continual  daylight  heightens  the  energies  .and 
vital  powers ;    and  yet,   in  our  own  first  winter,  it  was  less 
the   darkness  which   wore   us   than  the  perpetual   anxiety  ; 
when   our   greatest    consolation   was   found     in   the   Arabic 
proverb,  "In  niz  beguzared"   (This  too  will  pass  away),  in- 
scribed on  our  cabin  wall. 

12.  After   supper,  before   going  to   bed,  we    smoked   our 
cigars  in  the  shed  over  the  cabin  steps,  with  a  thermometer 
from  25°  to  37°  below  zero  C.,  and  talked  pleasantly  over 
bygone  days,  though  our  thoughts  were  not  unmixed  with 
gloomy  forebodings,  as  we  heard  ever  and  anon  the  ominous 
sounds  that  issued  from  the  moving  ice.     Existence  on  board 
a  straining  and  groaning  ship  resembles  life  over  a  volcano. 
It  was  only  after  we  had  been  some  time  in  this  ice-covered 
wooden  grotto  that  the  temperature  rose,  through  our  own 
heat,  a  few  degrees,  and  it  was  certainly  some  testimony  to 
the   excellence   of   my   down-quilted    clothes   that    I    could 
wear  them  in  the  cabin  without  being  distressed  by  the  heat, 
and  yet  I  was  able  to  sit  the  whole  evening  in  this  freezing 
hole   without   suffering   from  cold.      A  train-oil  lamp  sends 
out  almost  more  smoke  than  light,  and  when  the  snow  drifted, 
we  had  to  contend  with  the  importunities  of  the  dogs,  who 
seemed  to   regard   the   deck   shed    as   a   great   dog-kennel. 
With  a  sudden  rise  of  the  outer  temperature  this  shed  became 
utterly  uninhabitable,  for  its  coating  of  ice  then  melted  and 
fell  down  like  rain. 


I34  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 


13.  The  effect  of   the  long  winter  night  is  even   greater 
on  the  body  than  on  the  mind,   because  of  the  insufficient 
opportunities  for    exercise.     Middendorf  contrasting  the  in- 
fluence of  climate  on  men  remarks  : — "  I  consider  travels  in 
cold  regions,    even  in  the-  most   unfavourable  conditions  of 
climate,  to  be  far  less  dangerous  to  life  than  travels   under 
the   tropics.      The    former   certainly   are    unutterably    more 
miserable,  but  as  certainly  less  deadly.     I  say  this  notwith- 
standing   the    danger    which    threatens    ships    when     they 
penetrate  far  within  the  realms  of  ice.     We  are  never  secure 
from  sudden  and  deadly  attacks  of  illness  in  tropical  countries, 
but  the  longer  we  remain  in  them  the  less  is  the  danger ; 
whereas  the  high  North  deteriorates  the  constitution  of  the 
blood,  and  after  three  winters,  very  few  can  stand  a  fourth." 
To  the  influences  of  Polar  life  detrimental  to  health  must  be 
added  the  constant  hindrance  to  perspiration  from  wearing 
an  extra  quantity  of  woollen  clothing — more  or  less  hurtful  as 
it  is  more  or  less  waterproof — the  want  of  fresh  animal  and 
vegetable  food,  and  last,  but  not  least,  the  periodic  departure 
of  light  and  warmth. 

14.  Our   sanitary   condition    during   the   two   winters    we 
spent  on  board  the  Tegetthoff  was  not  altogether  satisfactory. 
Scorbutic  affections  of  the  mouth  and  diseases  of  the  lungs 
appeared  sometimes  in  distressing  shapes,  and  scarcely  a  day 
passed  in  which  we  had  not  one  or  two  on  the  sick-list.     I 
believe,  however,  that  our  trying  situation  had  far  more  to  do 
with   these  evils  than  the  southern   blood  and    breeding  of 
our  people.     The   incessant   watchfulness    and    care  of   Dr. 
Kepes  left  nothing  undone  which  would  counteract  the  evil 
influences  to  which  we  were  exposed.     The  berths  of  the  crew 
were  changed   in  rotation,  and   those  which  were    exposed 
to   the  greatest  accumulation   of  ice   were   dried   by  warm 
air    conveyed  through    movable   pipes.      Want   of   exercise, 
constant    change   of  temperature,    depression   of  mind,    the 
periodic    scarcity   of  fresh    meat,    were   the   causes   of  the 
scurvy.      In   our  first  winter  it  appeared  only  in  the  more 
crowded  quarters  of   the  crew.     It   was  then  also  that  the 
first    symptoms    of    lung-disease    appeared    in    Krisch,    the 
engineer,  which  he  probably  contracted  from  "  catching  cold." 
From  that  time   he  liked  to   sit    by  the   stove    and   always 


vi.]  LIFE  ON  BOARD  THE  "  TEGETTHOFF."  135 

complained  of  cold.  Our  supplies  of  preservatives  against, 
and  remedies  for  scurvy  were  rather  limited,  although  we  had 
at  our  disposal  several  hundred  tins  of  preserved  vegetables, 
a  cask  of  cloud-berries  (Rubus  chamcemorus),  which  we  had 
brought  from  Tromsoe,  and  above  a  hundred  bottles  of  lime- 
j  uice.  Wine  also  is  an  important  preservative  ;  we  therefore 
served  out  to  the  crew,  notwithstanding  our  small  supply, 
twice  a  week,  not  Kepes'  artificial,  but  real  wine — at  the  rate 
of  two  bottles  for  eighteen  men.  No  doubt  scorbutic 
symptoms  would  have  been  far  more  general  and  severe,, 
had  we  not  been  fortunate  enough  to  shoot  no  less  than 
sixty-seven  Polar  bears,  a  larger  number  than  had  fallen 
to  any  previous  expedition.  It  was  more  a  sign  of  our  good 
intentions  to  leave  nothing  undone  or  untried  in  our  efforts 
against  this  malady,  than  any  actual  service  it  was  to  us,  that 
we  sowed  cress  and  cabbage — radishes  did  not  succeed — in 
a  bed  which  we  suspended  over  the  stove.  It  was  interest- 
ing, however,  to  observe  how  the  little  plants  of  cress,  with 
every  change  of  position,  always  turned  to  the  light  of  the 
lamp,  growing  to  the  height  of  three  inches,  and  in  spite 
of  their  brimstone  colour  retaining  the  true  cress  flavour. 

15.  The  use  of  the  bath  tends  greatly  to  promote  health, 
for  without  it  the  skin  of  the  body  has  no  other  stimulant  \ 
but  the  insecurity  of  our  position  rendered  bathing  sometimes 
a  somewhat  doubtful  enjoyment.     I  remember  many  cases, 
when  some  of  us,  while  bathing  in  the  cold  dark  washing 
place  in  lukewarm  water  an  inch  deep,  were  alarmed  by  a 
sudden  pressure  of  ice.     Ultimately  we  gave  up  this  practice, 
finding  that  it  produced  a  troublesome  amount  of  damp. 

1 6.  To  a  stranger,  who  should  have  visited  us  during  this 
winter,   nothing  in  the  ship  would  have  been  so  surprising 
.and  interesting  as  a  visit  to  the  quarters  of  the  crew.     Except 

for  an  hour,  from  five  to  six  o'clock  in  the  evening,  when  they 
were  encouraged  to  take  exercise  in  the  open  air,  the  rest  of 
their  time  was  spent  in  school,  or  in  the  duties  of  the  watch, 
or  in  the  work  of  the  ship.  Our  supply  of  Slavonic  books 
was  unfortunately  not  very  ample,  and  besides,  not  all  the 
crew  were  able  to  read  ;  the  greater  therefore  was  their 
tendency,  like  men  of  southern  climes,  to  harmless  noise, 
and  I  believe  that  some  of  our  people,  during  the  whole 


136  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

expedition,  never  ceased  to  speak.  Here  I  beg  to  insert 
some  passages  from  my  journal : — "  Passing  by  the  steaming 
kitchen,  we  enter  their  messroom.  Here  in  a  narrow  space 
we  find  the  toilers  of  the  sea  and  the  mountains — eighteen 
in  number.  A  little  band  of  Dalmatians  who  for  the  first 
time  encounter  darkness  and  cold,  the  horrors  of  which  are 
increased  tenfold  to  men  born  and  bred  in  the  sunny  South. 
Truly  it  could  be  no  little  thing  to  such  men  to  be  torn  from 
sleep  almost  every  night  by  the  movement  of  the  ice,  to  sit 
day  after  day  in  the  long  night  of  winter  without  any  real 
intellectual  occupation,  and  yet  not  to  become  demoralized, 
but  remain  calm  and  composed,  and  ever  ready  to  obey  and 
oblige.  Can  anything  higher  be  said  in  their  praise  ?  Those 
men  slept,  each  by  himself,  in  a  double  row  of  berths  ;  bnly 
Lusina  the  boatswain,  and  Carlsen  the  harpooner,  who  had 
circumnavigated  Spitzbergen  and  Novaya  Zemlya,  occupied 
a  separate  partition.  The  clatter  of  the  tongues  of  so  many 
vehement  Southerners  was  like  the  sound  made  by  the  smaller 
wheels  of  a  machine,  while  the  naive  simplicity  of  the  grave 
Tyrolese  came  in  between  times,  like  the  steady  beat  of  a 
great  cog-wheel.  It  was  a  miniature  reproduction  of  the 
confusion  of  tongues  of  Babel.  Lusina  speaks  Italian  to 
the  occupants  of  the  officers'  cabin,  English  with  Carlsen, 
French  with  Dr.  Kepes,  and  Slavonic  with  the  crew.  Carlsen 
had  adopted  for  the  *  Slavonians,'  as  he  called  our  people,  a 
kind  of  speech  compounded  of  Norwegian,  English,  German, 
Italian,  and  Slavonic.  The  crew,  with  the  exception  of  the 
two  Italians,  speak  Slavonic  among  themselves.  The  head 
of  the  little  German  colony  is  the  cook,  a  Styrian  ;  his  heart 
is  better  than  his  culinary  skill,  for  only  too  readily  he  leaves 
his  work  to  be  done  by  the  stove.  There  is  also  among  them 
a  Moravian,  Pospischill,  the  Vulcan  of  the  ship  ;  but  we  must 
return  to  the  predominant  race — the  Slavonic.  There  is 
Lukinovich,  a  very  Harpagon,  always  collecting,  finding 
_ treasures  in  nails,  empty  bottles,  lamp  wicks,  and  searching 
even  under  the  snow  for  articles  wherewith  to  fill  his  sack — 
the  sack  which  he  was  one  day  to  leave  behind  him,  much 
against  the  grain,  when  we  abandoned  the  ship.  There  is 
Marola,  the  steward,  and  Fallesich,  who  had  worked  at  the 
Suez  Canal ;  these  are  our  great  singers.  Then  Palmich  with 


vi.]  LIFE  ON  BOARD  THE  "TEGETTHOFF."  137 

his  lance,  the  man  whose  zeal  never  bated,  and  whose  very 
glance  transfixed  everything ;  Vecerina,  the  Job  of  the  party, 
and  the  merry  Titans,  Sussich  and  Catarinich  ;  Latkovich 
and  Lettis,  '  the  philosophers  ; '  Stiglich,  the  immovable  con- 
fessor of  passive  obedience  and  the  unlawfulness  of  resistance ; 
Zaninovich,  the  '  pearl;'  Haller  the  herdsman  and  Klotz 
the  prophet.  Five  of  these  men  had  run  away  from  their 
wives.  Klotz  the  prophet  was  under  all  circumstances,  not 
indeed  the  most  useful,  but  the  most  interesting  person  of  this 
little  community.  A  lofty  calm  worthy  of  an  Evangelist 
graced  his  outer  man ;  of  still  greater  stature  than  Andreas 
Hofer,  he  wore,  like  him,  a  large  black  beard.  As  a  hunter, 
a  guide,  a  collector  of  stones,  and  a  lonely  enthusiast,  he  had 
moved  about  the  mountains  of  his  home,  leading  a  life  of 
visions.  At  home  he  was  regarded  as  an  incomparably  bold 
mountaineer,  and  the  ropes  of  the  ship  were  to  him  so  many 
convenient  foot-paths.  His  reputation  as  a  physician  in  his 
native  land  was  great,  and  on  board  ship  he  failed  not  with 
his  good  offices.  Haller,  his  fellow-countryman,  shared  with 
Klotz  the  office  of  armourer,  and  the  duties  of  hunter  and 
driver  of  the  sledge-dogs  ;  and  when  we  began  our  sledge 
journeys,  both  of  them  were  ready  to  relieve  others  in 
dragging.  Both  had' served  in  the  army,  Klotz  on  the  Tonale, 
Haller  on  the  Stelvio,  and  in  1868  the  latter  had  been  my 
useful  companion  when  I  was  engaged  in  the  survey  of  the 
Ortler  and  Adamello  Alps.  *  The  philosophers '  of  our 
party,  Latkovich  and  Lettis,  had  drawn  a  fine  distinction 
between  the  different  layers  of  ice,  according  as  they  con- 
tained a  greater  or  less  amount  of  saline  matter :  Ghiaccio 
delta  prima  and  Ghiaccio  del  la  seconda  qualita? 

17.  To  obviate  as  far  as  possible  the  evils  of  too  much 
leisure  among  the  men,  a  school  was  instituted  at  the 
beginning  of  the  January  of  the  second  year ;  Lieutenant 
Weyprecht,  Brosch,  and  Orel  undertook  the  Italians  and 
Slavonians,  and  I  the  Tyrolese.  To  avoid  all  confusion  I 
retired  with  my  smaller  body  of  pupils  to  the  shed  on  deck. 
Here,  with  the  thermometer  at  25°  to  37°  below  zero  C,  the 
seed  of  wisdom  was  sown  in  the  hearts  of  these  sons  of 
nature ;  but  alas !  the  climate  was  not  favourable  to  its 
growth.  After  many  painful  disillusions,  the  Pole  was 
11 


138  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP,  vu 

ascertained  to  be  the  intersection  of  lines  in  a  point,  of  which 
nothing  was  to  be  seen  in  reality.  If  in  this  little  lecture- 
room  an  exercise  had  to  be  examined,  and  the  scholars  were 
obliged  to  hold  in  their  breath,  in  order  that  the  teacher,  who 
spoke  out  of  a  cloud,  might  be  able  to  see  the  slate  ;  or  when 
the  pupils  engaged  in  a  division  sum  had  suddenly  to  stop  to 
rub  their  hands  with  snow,  was  it  a  matter  of  wonder  if  the 
school  did  not  flourish  exceedingly  ? 

1 8.  The  food  of  the  crew  consisted  principally  of  preserved 
meats,  different  kinds  of  pulse,  and  the  products  of  the  chase, 
amounting  on  an  average  to  two  bears  a  week.  Bear-flesh, 
roasted,  was  liked  by  all  ;  the  seal  was  at  first  despised,  till 
necessity  corrected  taste.  Besides  artificial  wine,  water  was 
their  strongest  drink. 


CHAPTER   VII. 

ICE-PRESSURES. 

I.  WHEN  compared  with  the  tortures  we  endured  from  the 
thought  that  we  were  captives  in  the  ice,  little  to  us  seemed 
the  dangers  which  threatened  our  existence,  though  these 
assumed  the  appalling  form  of  ice-pressures.  Daily  almost 
the  ship  had  to  sustain  the  attacks  of  our  old  enemy,  and 
when  the  ice  seemed  to  repose,  threatening  indications  were 
not  wanting  to  warn  us  how  short  that  repose  might  be.  My 
journal  records  a  long  series  of  commotions  in  the  ice  on 
almost  every  day  of  January  1873,  and  even  during  the  pauses 
the  timbers  of  the  ship  continually  shook  and  trembled  and 
creaked.  The  pressures  accompanied  by  a  low  grumbling 
noise  were  very  great  on  the  3rd,  and  lasted  till  the  oldest  ice 
was  shattered,  during  which  our  hatchways  were  displaced. 
On  the  4th  the  pressures  continued  without  intermission 
during  the  whole  day.  But  on  the  22nd  they  exceeded  all 
we  had  hitherto  experienced.  When  we  awoke  in  the  morn- 
ing, the  crashing  of  the  masses  of  ice  was  dreadful.  In  the 
messroom  we  heard  a  deep,  grumbling,  rumbling  noise — the 
ship  trembled  like  a  steam-vessel  under  very  high  pressure. 
When  we  hastened  on  deck  we  were  greeted  by  the  long 
howls  which  issued  from  the  ice,  and  we  were  soon  convinced 
of  the  exceedingly  formidable  character  of  this  special  onset ! 
Ten  paces  astern  of  the  ship,  the  ice  had  been  heaved  up  in  a 
moment  into  mountains.  With  the  greatest  difficulty,  amid 
the  profound  darkness  that  prevailed,  the  boats  were  got  on 
board,  and  many  stores  re-shipped,  though  some  of  our  coals 
had  to  be  sacrificed.  A  tent  formed  of  sails  was  engulfed, 


140 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


and  our  water-hole  utterly  displaced  by  the  pressures ;  it  was 
only  after  many  attempts  that  we  succeeded  in  finding  a 
thinner  ice-table,  which  we  pierced  till  we  found  water. 
January  26,  again  tremendous  pressures  roused  us  from  sleep. 
In  half  an  hour  every  preparation  was  made  to  leave  the 
ship,  and  I  believe  that  many  of  us,  while  waiting  the  issue 
amid  the  fearful  din  heard  from  the  deck,  longed  that  the 
ship  might  be  crushed,  in  order  to  escape  from  the  torture  of 
continually  preparing  to  depart. 


ICE-PRESSURE   IN  THE   POLAR  NIGHT. 


2.  I  will  not,  however,  fatigue  the  reader  with  the  mono- 
tonous rehearsal  of  our  ever-recurring  daily  dangers,  but  will 
here  insert  a  few  passages  from  my  journal  of  that  date,  which 
will  suffice  to  explain  our  position  : — 

"  Scarcely  asleep  after  the  exhaustion  and  cares  of  the 
day,  the  timbers  of  the  ship  begin  to  moan  and  groan  close 
by  our  ear,  and  we  awake  and  lie  listening  to  the  onset  of  the 
ice.  We  hear  the  step  of  the  watch  on  deck  crackling  on  the 
ice  as  he  paces  to  and  fro  ;  as  long  as  it  is  measured  and 


vii.]  ICE-PRESSURES.  141 

steady  we  know  there  is  nothing  to  be  feared.  Again  that 
uncanny  creaking  in  the  timbers,  and  the  watch  comes  to 
announce  to  those  below  that  the  terrible  movement  in  the  ice 
has  begun,  and  once  more  we  all  spring  from  our  beds,  put 
on  our  fur  clothes,  seize  our  ready-filled  bags,  and  amid  the 
darkness  stand  ready  on  deck,  and  listen  to  the  war  between 
the  ice  and  the  elements.  In  autumn,  when  the  ice-fields 
were  not  nearly  so  large  as  in  the  winter,  their  collision  was 
accompanied  by  a  deep  dull  sound  ;  but  now,  rendered  hard 
and  brittle  by  the  extreme  cold,  a  sound  as  of  a  howl  of 
rage1  was  emitted  as  they  crashed  together.  Ever  nearer 
come  the  rushing,  rattling  sounds,  as  if  a  thousand  heavy 
waggons  were  driving  over  a  plain.  Close  under  us  the  ice 
begins  to  tremble,  to  moan  and  wail  in  every  key ; — as  the 
fury  of  the  conflict  increases,  the  grumbling  becomes  deeper 
and  deeper,  concentric  fissures  open  themselves  round  the 
ship,  and  the  shattered  portions  of  the  floes  are  rolled  up  into 
heaps.  The  intermitting  howls  become  fearfully  rapid, 
announcing  the  acme  of  the  conflict,  and  anxiously  we  listen 
to  the  sound  which  we  know  too  well.  Then  follows  a  crash 
and  crack,  and  many  dark  lines  wander  over  the  ice :  these 
are  for  a  moment  narrow  fissures,  the  next  moment  they 
yawn  asunder  like  abysses.  Often  with  such  a  crash  the  force 
of  the  pressure  seems  broken  ;  the  piles  of  ice  collapse,  like 
the  undermined  walls  of  a  fortress,  and  calm  is  again  restored. 
But  to-day  this  was  but  the  commencement,  and  with  renewed 
violence  a  second  assault  of  the  ice  begins, — then  a  third,  yea 
a  fourth.  Tables  of  ice  broken  off  from  the  floes  around  us 
rise  perpendicularly  from  the  sea ;  some  are  bent  under  the 
enormous  pressure,  and  their  curved  shapes  attest  the  elasticity 
of  ice.  Like  a  giant  in  the  conflict,  a  veteran  floe,  many 
winters  old,  crushes  in  its  rotations  its  feeble  neighbours,  and 
in  turn  succumbs  to  the  mighty  iceberg — .the  leviathan  of  all 
ice-forms,  which  forces  its  way  through  a  phalanx  of  opposing 
masses,  crushing  them  to  pieces  as  it  advances.  Arid  in  this 
wild  and  fearful  tumult  a  ship — squeezed,  pressed,  all  but 
crushed,  by  the  ice ;  her  crew  on  deck,  ready  to  leave  her  at 
a  moment's  notice.  Boats  and  sledges,  tents,  provisions, 
arms  and  ammunition,  everything  prepared,  if  the  ship  should 
1  The  noise  produced  by  such  collisions  cannot  be  more  f  ttingly  expressed. 


142  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VO\AGES.  [CHAP.  vn. 

at  last  be  destroyed — but  for  what  ? — for  an  escape  ?  No  one 
really  thought  this  possible,  though  all  were  ready  for  the 
attempt.  But  again  the  conflict  ceases,  and  once  more  \ve 
breathe  freely,  and  can  contemplate  the  wonderful  change  that 
has  come  on  everything  round  us.  A  few  minutes  have 
sufficed  to  create  a  maze  of  mountain  chains  from  a  plain 
of  ice.  The  flat  surfaces  covered  with  snow,  which  we  saw 
yesterday,  are  gone.  Ice  ruins  are  visible  on  every  side. 
Abysses  gape  between  the  shattered  masses,  arid  show  the 
dark  sea  beneath.  Gradually  a  calm  has  crept  over  all ; 
equilibrium  is  reinstated  in  the  desolate  realm  of  ice  ;  new 
'  leads '  and  '  ice-holes '  have  been  opened  up,  but  for  the 
Tcgetthoff,  no  liberation." 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE  WANE   OF  THE   LONG    POLAR  NIGHT. 

1.  ALTHOUGH  the  sun  was  mounting  higher,  there  was  no 
essential  change  in  the  gloom  and  darkness  which  surrounded 
us.  In  fact  we  were  drifting  during  the  whole  of  January 
towards  the  north,  and  were  wintering  nearer  the  Pole  than 
any  who  had  ever  preceded  us.1  On  gloomy  days,  noon  was 
not  distinguishable.  We  were  now  four  hundred  miles  within 
the  Frozen  Ocean,  and  had  been  for  five  months  the  sport 
and  play  of  winds  and  currents,  and  nothing  indicated  any 
change  in  our  situation.  Yet,  in  spite  of  our  desperate  posi- 
tion, the  first,  ever  so  faint,  indications  of  the  return  of  light 
filled  us  with  joy.  With  a  clear  atmosphere,  January  10,  we 
observed  for  the  first  time  at  noon  a  decided  brightness,  and 
on  the  I Qth  a  brilliant  carmine  was  seen  in  the  sky,  an  hour 
before  noon  on  the  southern  horizon.  After  a  long  obscura- 
tion from  cloudy  weather,  the  morning  twilight  increased 
gradually,  and  by  the  end  of  the  month  it  was  discernible  in 
the  forenoon.  As  the  light  increased,  the  signs  of  the  con- 
vulsions were  more  distinctly  seen.  Round  us  there  rose 
piles  of  craggy  ice,  which,  hurled  up,  as  from  a  crater,  by  the 
ice-pressure  of  the  22nd,  kept  us  in  a  state  of  constant  fear, 
lest  the  ice-walls  would  break  up  and  fall  in  upon  us.  At  a 
little  distance  off,  nothing  was  to  be  seen  of  the  ship  but  the 
tops  of  its  masts  :  the  rest  of  it  was  hidden  behind  a  lofty 
wall  of  ice.  The  ship  itself,  raised  seven  feet  above  the  level 
of  the  sea,  rested  on  a  protuberance  of  ice,  and,  removed  from 
its  natural  element,  looked  a  truly  miserable  object.  This 
ice  protuberance  had  been  formed  from  a  floe  which  had 
been  often  rent  asunder  and  frozen  again,  and  had  been 
rounded  in  a  singular  manner  from  the  under-driving  of  the 
ice  and  the  lateral  pressure  in  its  recent  movements.  In 
other  respects,  also,  our  environment  had  been  completely 
changed.  Before  the  movement  in  the  ice  on  the  22nd,  a 

1  Hall's  contemporaneous  expedition  excepted. 


144  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  vm. 

narrow  strip  of  level  ice  wound  like  a  river  through  a  maze  of 
hummocks,  and  throughout  the  winter  this  had  been  diligently 
used  for  exercising  the  dogs.  Of  this  nothing  was  now  to  be 
seen :  walls  of  ice  rose,  where  a  fortnight  before  our  coal- 
house  had  stood  :  fissures  gaped  on  every  side.  In  every 
respect  the  weather  during  this  month  was  capricious  and 
unaccountable.  In  the  first  two  weeks,  the  temperature  fell 
several  times  below — 35°  F.,  and  on  January  8,  13  and  14, 
quicksilver,  exposed  to  the  cold,  froze  to  a  solid  mass  ;  gin 
also  froze,  and  alcohol  only  maintained  its  fluid  state.  Yet, 
notwithstanding  this  low  temperature,  the  snow  was  always 
soft ;  and  it  continued  to  be  so,  amid  all  the  variations  of 
temperature  and  the  high  winds  of  this  month.  January  22 
and  23,  the  temperature  rose  for  a  short  time  to  26°  F. ;  every- 
thing in  the  ship  then  began  to  thaw,  and  a  disagreeable 
moisture  penetrated  both  our  clothes  and  our  quarters.  The 
mean  temperature  of  this  month,  in  consequence  of  these 
abnormal  variations,  did  not  exceed  — 8°  F.,  and  was  therefore 
about  ten  degrees  higher  than  might  have  been  expected. 

2.  The  bears  had  in  these  last  weeks  kept  at  a  regretable 
distance  from  us.  On  the  I2th,  however,  a  very  large  fellow 
ventured  to  come  within  ten  paces  of  the  rope-ladder  on  the 
starboard  side.  We  fired  at  him  with  explosive  balls  and  he 
fell;  but  his  strength  was  so  great,  that  even  after  these 
terrible  wounds  he  was  able  to  get  up  and  run.  Explosive 
bullets,  however,  are  to  be  recommended  for  encounters  with 
bears,  though  their  flight  is  rather  uncertain.  A  bear-hunt, 
on  the  29th  and  3Oth,  had  a  somewhat  tragical  result.  About 
ten  o'clock  at  night,  when  it  was  quite  dark,  a  bear  approached 
the  ship,  and  with  the  agility  of  a  tiger  fell  on  Sumbu,  who 
got  away  very  cleverly,  and  by  his  loud  barking  summoned 
Krisch,  who  was  then  on  watch,  to  his  aid.  When  he  was  not 
more  than  ten  feet  from  the  deck  Krisch  fired  at  him  and 
wounded  him.  The  noise  brought  some  of  us  at  once,  and 
though  it  was  exceedingly  dark  and  the  snow  very  deep,  a 
useless  chase,  in  which  I  joined;,  forthwith  began.  The  pur- 
suit through  the  midst  of  driving  snow  became  weaker  ;  until 
at  last  I  found  myself  alone  with  Palmich.  We  could  see 
nothing,  and  heard  only  an  occasional  howl  of  pain.  We 
hastened  our  steps  through  the  whirling  snow,  till  we  saw,  by 


146  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  (CHAP. 

the  dim  light  of  our  lantern,  Matoschkin  lying  howling  on 
the  ground,  and  the  bear  a  few  steps  from  him,  vigorously 
assailed  by  Sumbu,  who  seized  him  by  the  foot  whenever  he 
began  to  retreat.  As  Matoschkin  incautiously  approached 
too  near,  the  bear  turned,  seized  him,  and  carried  him  off- 
To  fire  with  effect  was  impossible ;  we  were  too  far  off  to 
take  aim  with  our  rifles.  The  bear  continued  to  drag  the  dog 
along,  and  at  last  a  puff  of  wind  put  out  our  lantern,  and  we 
soon  discovered  our  inability  to  keep  up  with  our  enemy. 
Bitterly  as  wre  lamented  the  fate  of  the  poor  dog,  whose 
howls  were  brought  to  our  ears  by  the  wind,  we  had  nothing 
for  it  but  to  return  to  the  ship.  About  noon  next  day  when 
it  was  sufficiently  clear,  Brosch,  the  two  Tyrolese,  and  I  set 
out  to  ascertain  the  fate  of  the  dog  The  snow  was  drifting 
heavily,  and  we  constantly  sank  into  it  as  we  advanced.  After 
a  toilsome  walk  we  came  on  traces  of  blood,  which  Sumbu 
followed  up,  while  Gillis  timidly  stuck  to  us.  At  last,  after  we 
had  gone  on  for  the  third  of  a  mile,  Sumbu  came  back  in  a 
great  state  of  excitement,  and  then  ran  on  before  us  till  he 
stopped  at  an  ice-hummock,  where  he  renewed  his  angry  barks- 
We  advanced  with  quickened  steps  and  with  our  rifles  cocked, 
and  when  we  were  about  twenty  paces  from  it  the  bear  came 
out  from  behind,  apparently  in  great  astonishment.  After 
several  shots  the  bear  fell,  but  again  gathering  himself  up  he 
dragged  himself  along  like  a  walrus,  in  spite  of  his  broken 
spine,  with  extraordinary  activity  towards  an  "  ice-hole " 
covered  with  young  ice.  Two  other  shots  with  explosive 
bullets  terminated  his  career,  and  Matoschkin,  whose  body  we 
afterwards  found  behind  the  ice-hillock,  was  avenged. 

3.  The  cold  set  in  with  great  intensity  with  the  month  of 
February  and  maintained  itself  throughout  it :  the  mean 
monthly  temperature  being  —  31°  F.  Repeatedly  the  quick- 
silver froze,  and  in  the  last  eight  days  it  remained  solid. 
Even  the  petroleum  was  frozen  on  the  i/th  at  —  49°  F.  in 
the  globe  of  the  lamp,  though  it  was  throwing  out  a  con- 
siderable heat  The  lowest  temperature  we  experienced  was 
on  the  last  day  of  the  month,  — 5 1°  F.  Notwithstanding  the 
extreme  cold,  the  light  had  increased  so  much  that  a  ther- 
mometer, in  which  the  degrees  were  strongly  marked,  could 
be  read  off,  even  on  the  3rd  of  the  month,  at  ten  o'clock  in  the 


VIII.] 


THE  WANE  OF  THE  LONG  POLAR  NIGHT. 


forenoon  without  the  aid  of  lamplight ',  and  on  the  2Oth  we 
were  able  to  carry  on  our  meteorological  observations,  with- 
out any  artificial  light  at  six  o'clock  in  the  evening.  The 
ruddiness  we  observed  at  noon  in  the  south  grew  more  and 
more  decided.  On  clear  days  we  could  discern,  about  seven 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  a  faint  twilight,  and  at  noon  of 
February  14  the  near  approach  of  the  sun  was  distinctly  to 
be  traced  by  a  bright  cloud  that  was  resting  over  it,  though  it 
was  still  below  the  horizon.  About  the  middle  of  the  month 
there  was  light  enough  to  cause  the  different  forms  and  groups 
of  ice  to  cast  shadows.  In  spite  of  the  low  temperature,  we 
remained  for  hours  in  the  open  air,  though  previously  to 
this  period  we  had  ventured  on  deck  for  a  few  minutes  only 
at  a  time — the  watch  of  cqurse  excepted.  But  as  the  day- 
light increased,  we  saw  also  what  a  dark,  gloomy  grave  had 
been  our  abode  for  so  long  a  period.  All  our  thoughts  and 
conversations  were  concentrated  on  the  returning  light  of 
the  sun.  The  movements  of  the  ice  ceased  to  be  a  source 
of  dread,  though  for  several  days  during  the  month  they 
had  been  exceedingly  formidable.  In  the  course  of  our 
drifting  we  had  penetrated  into  a  region  where  never  ship  had 
been  before.  The  following  table  exhibits  the  course  of  the 
Tcgetthoff,  as  she  drifted  from  August  21,  1872,  to  February 
27,  1873  :— 


Time. 

N.  Lat. 

E.  Lon. 

Time. 

N.  Lat. 

E.  Lon. 

Au 

•\ 
1 
Sq 

•>c 

Nc 

g-    21, 

vhen  th 
jeset    .. 

Dt.    I,  l{ 

4 
ii 

H 

21 
26 
27 
28 
.      I 
2 

3 
17 
18 

22 
31 

v.  5 

1872,  da1 
e  ship  wa 

572"" 

f 

s 

76-22 
76-25 
76-23 
76-35 
76-37 
76-28 
76-36 
76-38 
76-37 
76-50 

76-59 
77'4 
77-50 
77H8 
77-46 
77-53 
77-53 

0        / 

62-3 
62-50 
62-49 
60-18 
60-50 

63-9 
64-8 
64-4 
64-10 
65-22 
65-48 
66-1 
69-22 
69-8 
69-26 
69-12 
69:30 

No 
De 

Ja 
Fe 

v.  9,  i 

H 

18 
28 

•   4 
8 

12 

16 

'9 

26 

2,   I 
19 
26 
.     2 
H 
19 
23 
27 

372  

78-I5 
78-8 
78-IO 
78T3 
78T9 
78-2I 

78-25 
78-22 

78-I3 
78-IO 

78-37 
78-43 
78-50 

78-45 
78-I2 

78-I5 
79'H 
79-12 

69-42 
7l'l6 
70-31 
69-48 
69-1 
69-2 

68-57 
67-42 
67-11 
68-19 
66-56 
69-32 
71-47 
73-7 
72-20 

7I-38 

73:::::;::: 

»     

H8  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  vm. 

4.  The  inspection  of  this  table  shows  that  the  movement 
of  the  ship  was  retarded  as  the  increasing  cold  closed  the 
open  places  of  the  sea,  and  when  we  fell  under  the  influence 
of  the  Siberian  ice-drift  from  east  to  west.  It  may  be 
remarked,  too,  that  we  drifted  generally  straight  before  the 
wind,  and  that  we  and  our  floe  during  the  first  four  months 
turned  only  one  degree  in  azimuth.  By  the  end  of  January 
all  the  open  places  of  the  sea  were  closed ;  and  the  masses  of 
ice  were  thus  driven  one  over  the  other  from  their  mutual 
pressure,  and  pile  thus  rose  upon  pile.  It  seems  probable^ 
also,  that  wind  was  the  main  cause  of  our  drifting,  while  sea 
currents  were  only  of  secondary  moment.  From  the  begin- 
ning of  the  month  of  February  we  drifted  constantly  toward 
the  north-west,  and  from  this  deviation  in  our  course  we 
indulged  in  the  hope  that  we  were  approaching  the  mysterious 
Gillis'  Land.  But  at  this  time  the  liberation  of  the  ship  in 
the  summer  was  the  sum  of  our  expectations  and  desires.  In 
fact,  there  was  not  one  of  us  who  doubted  this  eventuality. 
Fully  convinced,  as  we  were,  that  our  floes,  firmly  attached  to 
each  other,  would  ultimately  break  up  and  drift  southwards, 
we  determined  to  make  them  the  bearers  of  the  record  of 
what  had  befallen  us.  Hence  we  threw  out,  February  I4th, 
round  the  ship  a  number  of  bottles,  inclosing  a  narrative  of 
the  main  events  of  the  expedition  from  the  departure  of 
Count  Wilczek  up  to  that  date. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE   RETURN   OF   LIGHT.— THE   SPRING  OF    18/3. 

I.  THOUGH  the  sun  did  not  return  to  our  latitude  (78°  15',  71° 
38'  E.  long.)  till  the  I9th  of  February,  we  were  able  to  greet 
his  beams  three  days  previous  to  that  date,  owing  to  the  strong 
refraction  of  i°  40',  which  accompanied  a  temperature  of  —  35 
(F.).     To  the  Polar  navigator  the  return  of  the  sun  is  an  event 
of    indescribable  joy  and    magnificence.     In  those   dreadful 
wastes  he  feels  the  force  of  the   superstitions   of  past  ages, 
and   becomes   almost  a  worshipper  of  the  eternal  luminary. 
As  of  old  the  worshippers  of  Belus  watched  its  approach  on 
the  luxuriant  shores  of  the  Euphrates,  we,  too,  standing  on 
mountains  of  ice  or  perched  on  the  masts  of  the  ship,  waited 
to  hail  the  advent  of  the  source  of  light.     At  last  it  came  ! 
A  wave  of  light  rolled  through  the  vast  expanse  of  heaven, 
and  then — up  rose  the  sun-god,  surrounded  with  purple  clouds, 
and  poured  his  beams  over  the  world  of  ice.     No  one  spoke 
for  a  time.     Who  indeed  could  have  found  words  to  embody 
the  feelings  of  relief  which  beamed  on  the  faces  of  all,  and 
which  found  a  kind  of  expression  in  the  scarcely  audible  ex- 
clamation of  one  of  the  simplest  and  least  cultured  of   the 
crew,  "  Benedetto  giorno  !  "     The  sun  had  risen  with  but  half 
his  disk,  as  if  reluctant  to  shine  on  a  world  unworthy  of  his 
beams.     A  rosy  hue  suffused  the  whole  scene,  and  the  cold 
Memnon  pillars  of  ice  gave  forth  mysterious  whispers  in  the 
flood  of  heat  and  light.     Now  indeed  with  the  sun  had  a  new 
year  begun — what  was  it  to  bring  forth  for  us  and   our  pros- 
pects ?     But  alas,  his  stay  was  short — he  remained  above  the 
horizon  for  a  lew  minutes  only  ;  again  his  light  was  quenched, 
and  a  hazy  violet  colour  lay  over  distant  objects,  and  the 
twinkling  stars  shone  in  the  heavens. 


CHAP,  ix.]  THE  RETURN  OF  LIGHT.  151 


2.  While  we  watched  the  sun's  return,  we  had  also  an  oppor- 
tunity of  looking  on  each  other.     How  shocked  and  surprised 
were  we  with  the  change  which  had  been  wrought  on   us  in 
the  long   Polar  night !     Our  sunken  cheeks  were  overspread 
with  pallor ;  we  had  all  the  signs   of  convalescence  after  a 
long  illness — the  sharp-pointed   nose,  the  sunken   eye.     The 
eyes  of  all  had  suffered  from  the   light  of  lamps  which  had 
burnt  for  months ;  those  especially  who  had  used  them  for 
hard  work.     But  all  these  consequences  were  of  short  dura- 
tion under  the  beneficent  influence  of  the  daylight  and  the 
spring  sun,  which  soon  brought  colour  into  our  faces.     Cheer- 
fulness gradually  returned  to  all  on  board  the   Tegetthoff,  as 
we  revelled  in  the  warm  beams  of  the  sun.     We  built  a  house 
without  a  roof,  and  open  to  the  south,  and  thither  the  healthy 
and  the  sick  on  calm  fine  days  used  to  repair  from  the  dreary 
ship,  and  sun  themselves  like  lizards.     But  within  the   ship  it 
was  still  night. 

3.  The  visits  of  bears  again  became  numerous.     February 
r/th  one  of  about  five  feet  long  was  shot  very  close  to  the  ship, 
and  two  days  afterwards   a  second  came  near  us,  but  wa*s 
scared  away  by  the  awkwardness  of  the  hunters.     The  dogs 
however  pursued  him,  and  we  were  compelled  from  fears  for 
their  safety  to  follow  up  the  chase.  The  temperature  of  —  33°  F., 
and  a  pretty  strong  wind  against  which  we  had  to  run  in 
the  pursuit,  brought  on  in  some  of  our  party  palpitation  of 
the  heart  and  spitting  of  blood,  and  our  return  to  the  ship 
was   a  matter  of   some  difficulty.      On  the  morning  of  the 
2Oth  another  bear  came  close  to  the  ship,  was  fired  at,  but 
missed,  and  got  away.     Palmich,   Haller,  and  Klotz  imme- 
diately gave  chase,  though  the  temperature  was  -  40°  F.,  'and 
the  wind  high.     After  a  short  time  Palmich  returned  with 
his  face  frost-bitten,   and  the    Tyrolese  after  several    hours> 
without  any  success,  but  with   their  feet  so  frost-bitten  that 
they  had  lost  all  feeling  in  them.     The  second  stage  of  the 
malady  had  begun,  which  renders  amputation  almost  a  neces- 
sity.    For   several  hours  their  feet  had  to  be  rubbed  with 
snow  till    sensation  returned,  and   with    returning   sensation 
much  suffering  ;  large  swellings  as  big  as  a  man's  fist  rose  on 
their  feet,  which  were  reduced   only  after  the  application  of 
ice  for  several  days.     Again,  in  the  grey  of  the  morning  of 


152 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[•II A  I'. 


February  22nd  a  bear  came  within  eighty  paces  of  the  ship, 
which  Sussich,  the  watch  on  deck,  after  several  shots,  which 
the  animal  seemed  not  in  the  least  to  regard,  at  last  hit  and 
killed.  By  a  wound  on  his  right  forepaw  we  recognised  our 
friend  whom  we  had  hotly  chased  a  few  days  before.  He 
was  six  feet  in  length,  and  in  his  stomach  there  was  nothing 
but  a  small  piece  of  the  skin  of  a  seal.  Sussich  was  over- 
joyed with  his  success,  and  for  the  whole  day  tried  to  drag 
everyone  outside  the  ship  to  show  the  result  of  his  prowess, 
"  Se  mi  non  era,  il  copava  tutti,"  he  added,  with  a  look  of 
contempt  on  those  who  had  not  been  so  successful  as  himself 


THE    CARNIVAL   ON    THE    ICE. 


4.  Although  at  the  end  of  February  the  sun  rose  with  a 
carmine  light  which  imparted  an  indescribable  charm  to  the 
fields  of  snow  and  ice,  we  were  doomed  to  disappointment  in 
our  expectation  of  bright  and  clear  weather  in  the  after-part 
of  the  day.  Soon  after  sun-rise,  white  frosty  mists  gathered 
over  the  ice-fields,  making  the  sun  as  he  shone  through  them 
a  mere  ball  of  light,  or  completely  concealing  him.  On 
February  24th  we  enjoyed  the  peculiar  spectacle  of  seeing 


IX.]  THE  RETURN  OF  LIGHT.  153 

the  sun  appear,  the  temperature  being  —44°  F.,  distorted  by 
refraction,  through  the  thick  mists  on  the  horizon,  as  if  he 
were  quite  flat,  beamless,  and  of  a  coppery  red.  The  end  of 
February  reminded  us  of  the  carnival  time  of  the  land  of  the 
South,  and  the  crew  appeared  in  such  masques  as  they  could 
command ;  but  their  masquerading  formed  a  sad  and  mock- 
ing contrast  with  the  gravity  of  our  position.  The  men 
bestowed  all  their  art  on  "  Sumbu,"  who  was  dressed  up  as  the 
demon  "  Lindwurm,"  and  deported  himself  in  a  manner  highly 
becoming  his  costume. 

5.  With  the  month  of  March  the  spring  had,  in  name  at 
least,  begun  ;  but  in  our  sense  of  the  word  no  spring  as  yet 
appeared.  Instead  of  the  joyous  gleams  of  early  vegetation, 
a  blinding  white  waste  environed  us  ;  instead  of  the  perfumed 
breath  of  flowers  and  the  soft  air  of  spring,  there  rose  driving 
clouds  of  ice-needles ;  and  parhelia  of  almost  daily  occur- 
rence shone  in  a  heavy  sleepy  fashion  through  white  frosty 
mists.  The  atmosphere  was  filled  with  snow ;  to  be  con- 
vinced of  this  we  had  only  to  look  at  the  sun  when  the 
weather  seemed  clear  and  bright.  This  continual  fall  of  snow 
as  fine  as  dust  was  the  cause  of  the  retardation  of  the  eva- 
poration of  the  ice.  The  influence  of  the  sun  was  so  great, 
that  oh  March  3  the  black-bulb  thermometer  indicated  the 
unusual  temperature  of  45°  F.,  and  a  layer  of  snow  on  the 
bows  of  the  vessel  showed  evident  signs  of  diminution.  The 
thermometer,  in  the  sun,  rose  eight  degrees  March  6,  and 
nine  degrees  two  days  after.  The  weather  was  calm  and 
clear,  and  the  increasing  influence  of  the  sun  was  a  most 
joyful  sensation.  A  cube  of  ice  freely  suspended  showed 
during  the  second  half  of  March  a  daily  diminution  of  xJ-g-  of  its 
weight  from  evaporation  ;  while  in  the  sea  itself  its  behaviour 
was  the  very  opposite ;  the  cube  of  ice,  which  was  submerged 
to  a  depth  of  ten  feet  from  February  igth  to  March  5th, 
showed  at  the  latter  date  an  increase  of  its  mass,  amounting 
to  |  of  an  inch  round  its  surface.  In  the  beginning  and  end 
of  March  the  cold  was  so  severe,  that  the  thermometer  every 
day  for  three  weeks  marked  -35°  F.  Calms  and  clear 
weather,  however,  characterized  this  period  of  the  spring,  and 
snow-drifting  and  a  clouded  sky  were  rare.  On  the  I3th  of 
March  the  full  moon  again  appeared  in  the  azure  twilight  of 
12 


154  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

the  western  heavens,  and  its  soft  light  fringed  with  silver  the 
dark  ranges  of  ice.  The  days  became  longer,  and  the 
shadows  cast  by  the  masses  of  ice  were  shorter  and  more 
marked,  and  every  one  who  remained  long  in  the  open  air 
was  forced  to  use  snow-spectacles.  Small  avalanches  began 
to  fall  from  the  rigging,  and  the  masts,  spars,  and  ropes  lost 
their  white  frosted  aspect.  On  the  22nd  the  fore-part  of  the 
ship's  hull  facing  the  south  was  completely  free  from  snow 
and  its  dark  colour  was  visible.  On  the  2Qth  the  temperature 
in  the  sun  exceeded  the  temperature  at  9.30  A.M.  by  34°  F. ; 
and  on  the  3Oth  we  could  for  the  first  time  observe  the  melting 
of  the  snow  on  the  seams  of  the  timber  of  the  ship's  hull. 
The  enumeration  of  these  events,  insignificant  as  they  may 
appear,  will  serve  to  show  with  what  attention  the  Polar 
navigator  notes  the  minutest  occurrence  due  to  the  influence 
of  the  sun. 

6.  Welcome,  though  illusive,  harbingers    of  the  returning 
summer  were   the   first  birds,  whose   arrival  we  greeted  on 
the  I Qth.     These  were  little  divers,  which  flew  over  the  ship 
to   the  open  spaces  of  water    amid  the  ice,  there  to   seek 
their  food  in  the  countless  crustacean  which  abound  in  them. 
Magnificent  auroras  continued  to  illuminate  our  nights  ;  and 
although  the  duration  of  their  intensity  was  much  too  brief 
to  serve  as  a  source  of  light,  there  was  a   charm  in  these 
phenomena  which  their  daily  recurrence  could  not  weaken. 

7.  While  under  these  various  influences  the  health  of  all  on 
board  the   Tegetthoff  greatly  improved,  we  were  threatened 
with  the  serious  calamity  of  losing  our  excellent  physician, 
Dr.  Kepes,  who  fell  ill  on  the  I3th  of  the  month.     For  two 
weeks  we  were  kept  in  a  state  of  anxious  fear  for  him  ;  and 
our  anxieties  were  increased  as  we  had  to  treat  his  malady 
without  the  necessary  knowledge  and   experience.     To  our 
great  joy,  however,  he  was  spared  to  us  ;  and  our  supply  of 
fresh  bear's-flesh  was  henceforth  reserved  for  him. 

8.  For  some  time  the  bears  had  observed  a  very  distressing 
reserve  and  shyness  in  their  visits.     On  the  I5th  one  came 
near  us,  and  as  Pekel  had  for  some  time  announced  his  ap- 
proach, he  found  a  long  front  of  rifles  drawn  up  behind  some 
masses  of  ice  to  give  him  a  warm  reception.     He,  as  usual, 
came  on  under  the  wind,  showing  considerable  interest  in  our 


IX.] 


THE  RETURN  OF  LIGHT. 


edifices.  He  then  ascended  a  small  ice-crag,  and,  after 
balancing  himself  carefully,  sat  down  on  the  top  of  it,  with  his 
snout  uplifted,  snuffing  all  round.  This  seemed  so  ludicrous 
to  some  of  our  party  that  they  burst  out  into  a  laugh  so  loud, 
that  the  bear  came  down  from  his  pinnacle  in  evident  astonish- 
ment, and  with  much  circumspection  drew  nearer  and  nearer 
till  at  a  short  distance  from  us  he  fell  mortally  wounded.  He 
was,  alas !  a  very  small  animal,  about  5  J  feet  long,  and  his 
stomach  was  absolutely  empty.  On  the  3Oth  of  March 
another  came  close  to  the  ship ;  the  watch  on  shore  fired 


THE  "TEGKTTHOFF"  DRIFTING  IN  PACK-ICE. — MARCH  1873. 


at,  but  missed  him,  whereupon  both  the  watch  and  the  bear 
took  to  flight. 

9.  April  at  last  arrived,  and  with  it  the  time  of  icicles,  which 
hung  down  from  every  yard  of  the  ship,  and  from  every  rope 
of  the  rigging,  from  every  icy  ridge  and  crag.  The  melting 
and  decaying  of  the  ice,  though  always  a  source  of  satisfaction 
when  the  question  of  its  breaking  up  is  discussed,  went  on, 
to  our  impatient  desires,  with  intolerable  slowness.  What  was 


156  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

it  to  us  that  we  were  able  to  read  even  at  midnight  on  the 
2nd  of  April ;  that  the  number  of  divers  and  sea-gulls  con- 
stantly increased  ;  that  on  the  6th  the  difference  of  tem- 
perature between  sun  and  shade  was  18° ;  that  the  black-bulb 
thermometer  on  the  2Oth  showed  43°  F. ;  that  the  sun  on 
the  nth  rose  about  two  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  from  the 
1 6th  remained  constantly  in  the  heavens  ?  What  did  all  this 
matter?  The  constant  light  notwithstanding,  we  were  still 
environed  with  the  signs  of  deepest  winter,  and  the  forms  and 
masses  of  ice  collaps.ed  with  a  slow  deliberation  that  tortured 
us.  We  were  no  longer  to  be  satisfied  and  amused  with  the 
spectacle  of  parhelia,  even  though  the  phenomenon  should 
appear,  as  it  did  on  the  1st  of  April,  with  eight  suns.  Months 
of  weary  waiting  still  lay  before  us ;  daily  we  had  to  arm 
ourselves  with  patience,  as,  when  we  came  on  deck,  we  dis- 
covered the  apparently  unchangeable  character  of  our  en- 
vironment, with  all  its  forms,  which  had  become  familiar  to  us 
down  to  the  smallest  details.  Reluctantly  condemned  to 
almost  total  idleness,  we  filled  up  our  time  with  such  occupa- 
tions as  fancy  suggested.  Some  of  our  people  built  a  tower 
of  ice  on  a  level  part  of  our  floe  ;  others  tried  their  rifles — 
tried  often  enough  before — at  empty  bottles  as  targets.  Along 
with  the  Tyrolese  I  constructed  a  road  through  hills  of  ice, 
over  passes  and  ridges,  going  up  and  down  in  serpentine  paths, 
making  a  circuit  of  about  three  miles  round  the  ship.  The 
labour  of  weeks  with  picks  and  shovels  was  expended  in 
making  and  preserving  it ;  after  each  downfall  of  snow  this 
road  had  to  be  dug  out  afresh.  Our  passing  and  repassing 
along  it  through  a  maze  of  ice  not  only  beneficially  exercised 
our  bodies,  but  furnished  opportunities  for  training  our  dogs 
to  drag  heavy-laden  sledges.  I  continued  also  to  fill  my 
portfolio  with  studies  of  scenery  in  the  ice,  and  I  accustomed 
myself,  whenever  there  was  no  wind,  whatever  might  be  the 
temperature,  to  draw  for  hours  together  with  no  other  pro- 
tection to  my  hands  than  light  gloves. 

10.  April  had  begun  with  a  temperature  of  —38°  F. ;  as 
the  month  advanced  it  steadily  increased.  At  the  end  of 
the  month  the  extreme  of  cold  was  but  —  20°  F.  But  the 
weather  had  now  lost  the  clearness  of  the  early  spring  ;  and 
constant  calms,  together  with  the  frequent  falls  of  snow, 


IX.]  THE  RETURN  OF  LIGHT.  157 

undid  the  work  of  the  few  hours  of  the  day  on  which  the  sun 
shone.  The  ice  was  covered  with  deep  snow ;  on  the  level 
we  sank  ankle  deep,  while  among  the  hummocks  it  was  up  to 
our  knees.  Sledging  would  have  been  impracticable.  Among 
the  changes  produced  by  the  softening  of  the  weather,  none 
was  greater  or  more  agreeable  than  the  return  of  daylight  to 
the  cabin,  when  we  took  off  the  covering  of  the  skylight  and 
removed  the  tent-roof  from  the  fore-part  of  the  ship.  Once 
more  to  be  able  to  read  without  the  dull  glimmer  of  arti- 
ficial light  was  an  extraordinary  event  in  our  monotonous  life. 
For  five  months  our  lamps  had  been  burning  in  our  mess-room, 
so  that  the  walls  were  black  with  smoke,  and  it  was  a  work  of 
no  small  labour  to  make  them  clean  and  pleasant.  The 
unloading  of  the  ship's  hold  was,  however,  a  far  heavier,  though 
necessary  task  ;  the  thick  crusts  of  ice  which  had  accumulated 
on  its  sides  must  be  removed,  lest  the  provisions  should  be 
damaged  by  their  thawing ;  and  there  was  no  time  to  lose, 
for  the  temperature  in  the  hold  was  only  1°  below  zero.  The 
provisions,  which  had  been  left  out  on  the  ice,  were  again 
stowed  in  the  ship,  the  cessation  of  the  ice-pressures  render- 
ing this  precautionary  measure  useless. 

11.  Round  a  ship  which  has  wintered  in  the  ice  there  is 
gradually  accumulated    a   mass   of  rubbish   of  all  kinds,  of 
which  cinders  form  a  considerable  constituent.     These,  when 
thrown   out  in  small  quantities,  sink  at  once  into  the  snow, 
while  larger  quantities  act  as  a  non-conducting  layer.     Hence 
we  were  surrounded  by  a  maze  of  holes,  big  and  little,  alter- 
nating with  plateaus,  under  which  winter  still  continued  to 
linger.     When  thaw-water  made  its  appearance,  all  this  was 
transformed  into  a  succession  of  lakes  and  islands,  which  we 
bridged  over  by  planks. 

12.  Meantime  we   began  our  labours  of  digging  out  the 
ship.     We  removed  the  wall  of  snow,  which  had  served  as  an 
outer  garment  and  protection  during  the  winter,  and  the  hard- 
trodden  layer  which  covered  the  deck  a  foot  thick.     In  clear- 
ing away  from  the  after-part  of  the  ship,  we  discovered  that 
the    machinery    protecting   the  screw   had   been   torn   away 
by  the  ice-pressures.     The   mischief  done,  however,  was  not 
considerable  ;  and  as  the  ship  made   no  water,  we  consoled 
ourselves  with  the  thought,  that  she  had  sustained  no  material 


iS8  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

injury,  though  she  had  lain  so  long  out  of  water  perched  on 
the  floe. 

13.  The  continued  cessation  of  movements  in  the  ice  in- 
duced Weyprecht  to  erect  a  tent  at  no  great  distance  from 
the  ship,  to  carry  on  in  it  observations  of  the  magnetic  con- 
stants, which  were  taken  on  certain  appointed  days.     On  the 
night  of  one  of  such  days,  Orel,  who  conducted  these  obser- 
vations, was  surprised  by  the  visit  of  a  bear.     His  shouts  for 
help  brought  us  on  deck,  but  before  we  could  actually  reach 
him,  the  seaman  on  the  watch  had  killed  the  bear  with  an 
explosive  bullet.     Hitherto  these  animals  had   shown    little 
courage  in  the    neighbourhood   of  the    ship,   and   to    shoot 
them  from  the  deck  exposed  no  one  to  any  danger  ;  but  this 
incident  showed  us  that  we  could  not  count  securely  on  their 
actions.     Soon  after  this  we  had  another  surprise.     Stiglich, 
the  seaman  on  watch  on  shore,  suddenly  found  himself  con- 
fronted with  a  bear  about  eight  paces  oft".     Throwing  his  cap 
to  the  bear,  he  made  a  rush  for  the  rope-ladders  of  the  ship, 
but  fell  in  his  hurry  and  confusion.     Carlsen,  hearing  his  cries 
for  help,  hastened  to  the  rescue,  and  dexterously  shot  the 
pursuer.     A  glorious  event  for  Carlsen !  who  used  to  tell  us 
strange  stories  of  his  encounters  with  bears :    how  he   had 
scared  them  away  with  the  glance  of  his  eye ;  and  how  once 
in  Novaya  Zemlya  he  had  frightened  away  a  whole  pack  of 
them  by  the  magic  of  his  glance.     All  doubts  in  the  prowess 
of  his  eye  were  silenced  to-day  by  the  more  unquestionable 
prowess  of  his  rifle.     On  the  28th  of  May  a  bear  clambering 
over  the  wall  of  ice  close  astern  of  the  ship  was  shot  dead 
with  an  explosive  bullet.     His  stomach  was  empty,  but  not- 
withstanding his  leanness,  he  furnished  more  meat  than  many 
others,  for  he  was  fully  seven  feet  long. 

14.  At  the  end  of  April  the  force  of  the  winds  so  loosened 
the  compactness  of  the  ice,  that  dark  strips  hanging  above  the 
horizon  in  all  directions  announced  the  existence  of  numerous 
fissures,  although  they  were  invisible  even  from  the  masts  of 
the  ship.     We  counted  on  these  signs  with  such  unshaken 
confidence,  that  when  on  the  2nd  of  May  we  heard  in  the 
distance   the   now   familiar  sound  of    the  ice-pressures,    we 
heard  them  not  only  without  dismay,  but  as  the  voice  of  a 
joyous  message.     Three-quarters  of  a  year  had  passed  away 


IX.]  THE  RETURN  OF  LIGHT.  159 

since  we  were  first  caught  in  the  ice — a  time  laden  to  us  with 
bitter  disappointments  to  our  hopes,  and  great  dangers  to  our 
lives.  The  hour  of  our  long  and  ardently  desired  liberation 
seemed  at  hand.  If  once  we  got  free,  it  lay  within  the  bounds 
of  possibility  that  we  might  reach,  if  not  the  somewhat 
mythical  Gillis'  Land,  then  at  least  the  uninhabited  Arctic 
coasts  of  Siberia.  Siberia  had,  in  fact,  become  the  rosiest  of 
our  hopes.  Some,  indeed,  still  indulged  in  extravagant  ex- 
pectations and  counted  on  the  discovery  of  new  lands,  even 
while  they  drifted  with  the  ice.  But  our  wishes  for  the  most 
part  had  become  so  subdued,  that  the  discovery  of  the  small- 
est cliff  would  have  satisfied  our  ambition  as  discoverers. 

15.  But  Nature's  laws  held  their  own  course,  undisturbed 
by  our  desires.     Snow  continued  to  fall  in  abundance,  and 
spread  its  mantle  over  the  ice.     The  constant  round  of  down- 
falls and  evaporation  was  a  sad  bar  to  our  hopes.     In  the 
beginning  of  May  the  snow  began  to  thaw  on  the  surface,  and 
became  soft  and  sticky.     Even  in  the  depth  of  winter  it  was 
never  hard,  but  like  the  fine  dry  grains  of  driving  sand.     This 
change  in  the  snow,  which  occurs  a  fortnight  earlier  than  in 
Greenland,  compelled  us  to  substitute  our  black  leather  boots 
for  those  of  sailcloth,  which  we  had  hitherto  worn.     On  the 
2nd  of  May  the  temperature  fell  to  —  8°  F.,  but  it  now  began 
to  rise  gradually,  so  that  it  sometimes  reached  the  freezing 
point  about  the  end   of  the  month,  and   on   the  2Qth   rose 
five  degrees  above  it.     The  mean  temperature  of  the  month, 
however,  was  not  above  16°  F.     But  the  difference  of  tem- 
perature in  the  sun  and  the  shade  became  greater  and  greater. 
The  thermometer  marked  — 18°  F.  at  6  P.M.  of  the  1st  of  May, 
and  on  the  nth  the  black-bulb  thermometer  showed  90°  F. 
at  3   P.M.,   while  the  common  instrument  gave  only  14°  F. 
In  the    middle  of  the  month,    after   the   heavy  winds   fell, 
we  were  enveloped  with  dark  fog  banks  ;  stray  beams  of  the 
sun  broke  through  the  warm   misty  atmosphere,   and   dark 
skies  were  succeeded  by  masses  of  white  vapour  illuminated 
by  the  sun.     Just  as  in  our  happier  clime,  the  Arctic  April 
has  her  alternations  of  cloud  and  sunshine. 

1 6.  Hitherto  the  only  birds  which  had  visited  us  were 
divers  and  gulls.  Once  only  a  snow-bunting  flew  among  us, 
and  fearlessly  settled  on  the  ship.  On  the  24th  of  May  the 


160  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

auks  made  their  appearance,  and  from  that  date  we  were  con- 
stantly entertained  by  the  whirring  sounds  of  their  flight.  As 
they  keep  one  direction  in  their  flight,  we  could  shoot  those 
only  which  passed  over  the  ship ;  they  were  a  useful  addition 
to  our  table,  though  they  had  to  be  steeped  in  vinegar  to 
make  them  palatable.  The  majestic  Burgomaster  Gull  ap- 
peared somewhat  later,  and  later  still  the  "  Ice-birds  "  fre- 
quented the  shores  of  the  lakes  around  us,  and  hovered  round 
the  remains  of  the  bears  we  had  shot.  These  birds  settled 
with  the  greatest  boldness  in  the  immediate  neighbourhood 
of  the  ship,  and  day  and  night  filled  the  air  with  their  wild 
shrill  cries. 

17.  By  the  middle  of  March,  Krisch,  the  engineer,  had  put 
the  steam  machinery  in  working   order,  but  another  month 
elapsed  before  the  screw-propeller,  which   had  been    frozen 
fast,  was  set  free ;  our  fears  lest  it  should  refuse  to  act  proved 
to  be  groundless.     As,  however,  there  was  no  prospect  of  our 
being  able    to    use  steam    for  some   time,   it    was    thought 
advisable  to  dig  out  and  raise  the  rudder  in  order  to  secure  it. 

1 8.  On  the  26th  of  May  a  partial  eclipse  of  the  sun  was 
visible  in  our  latitude ;  but  from  an  error  in  our  calculations 
we  had  ante-dated  the  commencement  of  the  observation  by 
about  two  hours  and  a  half.     Everyone  on  board  who  had  an 
instrument  at  his   command  stood  ready  to  observe  the  pas- 
sage of  the  moon  over  the  sun's  disk.     After  waiting  for  some 
time  in  vain,  we  discovered  the  error  we  had  committed  as  to 
the  time  of  the  beginning  of  the  eclipse,  but  in  order  that  the 
dignity  of  astronomical  observation  might  not  be  degraded  in 
the   eye  of  the  crew,  we  still  held  our  ground  with   the  tele- 
scopes in  our  hands.     Two  hours  of  such  suspense  enabled  us 
to  feel  that  there  could  be  no  more   perfect  fulfilment  of  the 
punishment  of  Sisyphus  than  being  condemned  to  wait  for  an 
eclipse  of  the  sun  which  would  not  come  off!      At  last  the 
eclipse  took  place,  but  not  until  great  disgust  had  been  excited 
in  the  minds  of  men  who  were  too  much   inclined  to  regard 
the  whole  thing  as  a  piece  of  humbug.     At  the  height  of  the 
eclipse  about  one-third  only  of  the  sun's  disk  was  obscured, 
and  the  sun  was  so  covered  with  mist  that   we  could  look  at 
it  without  the  use    of  coloured  glasses.     The  whole  duration 
of  the  eclipse  was  one  hour  and  fifty-six  minutes. 


IX.]  THE  RETURN  OF  LIGHT.  161 

19.  From  the  1st  of  the  month  the  number  of  living 
creatures  belonging  to  the  expedition  had  been  increased  by 
the  birth  of  four  Newfoundland  puppies,  who  passed  the 
earliest  days  of  their  youth  in  a  tent  erected  on  the  ice,  and 
artificially  heated  to  the  temperature  of  a  European  May. 
But  all  our  care  in  rearing  this  litter  was  frustrated  by  one  of 
these  little  Polar  wretches,  who,  after  sucking  his  mother  till 
he  was  as  round  as  a  drum,  lay  on  his  brothers  as  they  slept, 
and  stifled  them.  This  little  criminal  received  the  name  of 
Torossy,  and  soon  became  the  pet  of  the  crew,  and  a  favourite 
with  all  the  other  dogs.  The  fame  which  he  afterwards  gained 
made  him  an  important  member  of  the  expedition.  All  the 
dogs  had  become  sc  hardy  during  the  past  winter,  that  they 
now  slept  outside  their  kennels,  finding  the  inside  too  warm 
for  them. 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE   SUMMER  OF    18/3. 

I.  THE  time  crept  away -with  indescribable  monotony.  The 
crew  performed  their  heavy  labours,  but  of  events  there  were 
none.  The  only  change  in  our  position  was  the  constant 
decay 'of  the  buttresses  and  walls  of  ice,  until  the  frozen  sea 
lay  like  a  snowy  chaos  before  us.  Pure  sharp-edged  ice  was 
nowhere  to  be  seen;  the  edges  were  no  longer  transparent; 
evaporation  had  transformed  the  surface  into  a  kind  of 
glacier-snow.  June  I,  we  had  the  greatest  degree  of  cold  of 
the  month,  the  thermometer  marking  13°  F. ;  but  on  the 
last  day  it  rose  to  32*2°  F. ;  the  mean  temperature  being 
31*1°  F.  Every  week  brought  us  promises  of  summer.  On 
the  ist  the  black-bulb  thermometer  reached  98°  F.  ;  on  the 
1 4th  rain  fell  for  the  first  time  ;  on  the  i6th  the  temperature 
at  9  o'clock  A.M.,  was  41  -5°  F.,  on  the  26th  46-4°  F.,  and  on 
the  29th  even  50*2°  F.  On  these  days  the  air  seemed  to 
have  the  pleasant  mildness  of  southern  climes,  and  when  there 
was  no  wind  we  felt  an  oppressive  sultriness.  Wreaths  of 
mist  moved  along  the  icy  wastes  which  glowed  with  sunlight, 
while  the  long  dark  lines  of  ice-wall  lay  in  deep  shadow. 
The  air  was  filled  with  flocks  of  birds ;  day  and  night  we 
heard  the  shrill  cries  of  the  Robber-gulls,  ever  and  anon 
mingled  with  the  barking  of  the  dogs  in  full  pursuit  of  them. 
Flocks  of  rotges  congregated  without  fear  in  the  narrow 
basins  of  distant  "  leads  ;  "  and  the  "  great  gulls,"  shunning 


CHAP,  x.]  THE  SUMMER  OF  1873.  163 

companionship,  sat  for  hours  on  the  top  of  an  ice-cliff,  or  in 
the  middle  of  a  floe. 

2.  No  one  who  has  not  actually  seen  it,  can  imagine  the 
blaze  of  light  in  the  Arctic  regions  on  clear  days,  or  the  glow 
which   floats  sometimes  over  the  cold  white   ice-floes,   with 
their  outlines  in  constant  vibration,  while  refraction  transforms 
the  icebergs  into  a  variety  of  shapes.      The  sun's  power  is 
sometimes  so  great  as  to  blister  the  skin  in  a  few  hours,  and 
the  glare  from  snow  and  ice  produces  snow-blindness,  if  the 
eyes  be  not  carefully  protected.     At  a  little  distance  the  sea 
appears  to  be  of  a  deep  black  colour,  though  it  still  preserves 
its  ultramarine  hues  in  the  narrow  "  leads  ; "   even  the  pure 
blue   of   the   heavens   may   be    called    almost    black    when 
compared  with  the  dazzling  sheen  of  the  ice.     In  the  middle 
of  June  there  was  an  incessant  dripping  and  oozing  in  the 
ice-world,  and  streams  of  thaw-water  flowed  into  the  open 
fissures.     By  the  end  of  the   month   the  surface  of  the  ice 
resembled  snow;    and  even  at  some   depth  it  was  viscous, 
instead  of  brittle  and  hard  as  glass,  as  it  is  during  the  colder 
season.     Streams  of  thaw-water  ran  through  the  softened  and 
saturated  snow.     Small  lakes  were  formed  on  the  levels,  and 
swamps  of  snow,  wearing  a  traitorous  exterior,  surrounded 
their  borders.     In  the  summer  of  1873  we  observed  a  vertical 
decrease  of  five  or  six  feet  in  the  thickness  of  the  ice ;  but 
this  diminution  in  thickness  was  from  the  surface  downwards, 
while  in  the  sea  itself  there  was  little  or  no  thawing,  because 
the   temperature  of  its  surface  was  still  below  zero.      The 
moisture,  from  which  there  was  no  escape,  became  exceedingly 
troublesome.     In   spite   of   our   stout  leather  boots  we  had 
never    the   comfort   of    dry   feet   during   the   whole   of    the 
summer,  and  this  we  felt  the  more,  as  our  labours  to  free  the 
ship,   which   we  had  commenced  at  the  beginning  of  May, 
necessitated  our  being  constantly  amid  the  snow  and  ice. 

3.  At  the  end  of  May  the  ship  began  slowly  to  settle,  and 
the  water  rose  between  the  ice  and  the  hull  on  the  fore-part 
of  the  ship.    But  we  soon  discovered  that  these  small  changes 
would  not  suffice  to  free  us  from  our  prison-house,  but  that 
we  must  ourselves  endeavour  to  loosen  the  fetters  which  held 
us  fast,  if  it  were  only  to  banish   gloomy  thoughts  of  the 


164  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

future  by  action  of  some  kind  or  other.  Hence  constant 
digging,  sawing,  and  blasting  on  our  floe,  through  May,  June, 
July,  and  August — labours  in  which  the  whole  crew  of  the 
ship,  with  the  exception  of  the  sick  and  of  the  cook,  took 
part ;  labours,  alas !  which  admonished  us  of  the  impotence 
of  man  when  he  contends  against  the  power  of  Nature. 
Only  on  the  port  side  of  the  ship  were  our  efforts  to  dig 
through  the  floe  at  all  successful ;  on  the  starboard  side  the 
floe  had  been  so  enormously  increased  by  the  tables  of  ice 
forced  upon  one  another,  that  we  had  not  pierced  through  the 
ice  after  sinking  a  shaft  eighteen  feet  deep  ;  and  at  last  the 
water,  forcing  itself  through  the  pores  of  the  ice,  compelled 
us  to  desist  from  the  labour  of  sinking  deeper.  The  process 
of  sawing  was  possible  only  where  we  had  broken  through 
the  ice — that  is,  on  the  port  side  ;  yet  even  there  the  great 
thickness  of  the  floe  necessitated  the  construction  of  longer 
instruments,  for  which  the  iron  casing  of  the  engine-room  had 
to  furnish  the  material.  The  difficulty  of  sawing  increases 
with  the  thickness  of  the  ice  in  an  almost  incredible  manner. 
It  is  easy  enough  to  cut  through  a  floe,  four  or  five  feet  thick, 
but  to  break  up  one,  eight  or  ten  feet  thick,  is  a  matter 
of  great  difficulty.  Our  saws  too,  even  when  they  were 
lengthened,  permitted  a  play  of  only  a  foot ;  and  their 
twisting,  as  'they  cut  deep,  proved  a  great  hindrance.  Besides, 
when  we  had  cut  to  the  depth  of  a  fathom,  the  saws  were 
always  frozen  fast,  and  when  we  attempted  to  free  them  by 
blasting  they  were  very  often  broken  in  pieces.  But  even  the 
sections,  made  with  so  much  difficulty,  often  proved  to  be 
quite  useless,  as  they  were  frozen  together  again  by  broken  ice 
left  in  the  cut.  Blasting  with  gunpowder  proved  as  ineffectual 
as  in  the  previous  year;  in  fact,  the  process  was  only  applicable 
to  ice-blocks  which  had  been  loosened  by  sawing,  and  which 
could  not  be  broken  up  by  the  crow-bar  alone. 

4.  By  the  middle  of  June  we  were  at  last  convinced  that 
the  thickness  of  the  ice  rendered  it  impossible  to  join  together, 
by  sawing,  the  two-and-twenty  holes  which  we  had  dug  out 
round  the  ship.  Henceforward  our  labours  were  confined  to 
the  formation  of  a  basin  at  the  fore-part  of  the  ship.  Although 
we  saw  the  impossibility  of  liberating  the  vessel,  as  long  as 


x.J  THE  SUMMER  OF  1873.  165 

she  rested  on  a  mountain  of  ice,  we  hoped  that  the  basin 
would  help  to  break  up  the  floe,  and  that  the  Tegetthoff  would 
of  itself  return  to  its  normal  position.  The  gliding  down  of 
the  ship,  raised  as  it  was,  to  its .  natural  water-line  might 
indeed  easily  end  in  a  catastrophe,  but  we  braved  this  peril 
when  we  thought  of  the  vain  attempts  we  had  made  to  free 
her.  Though  the  ship  sunk  so  much  in  the  course  of  the 
summer,  that  its  height  above  the  water-line  was  a  little  more 
than  two  feet  in  the  fore-part  of  the  ship,  and  three  feet  in 
the  after-part,  this  circumstance  in  our  favour  was  outweighed 
by  the  disadvantage  of  the  rapid  melting  away  of  the  ice  at 
its  sides.  The  ship,  freed  from  its  covering  of  ice,  stood  so 
high  above  it,  that  in  order  to  guard  against  the  danger  of  its 
overturning  we  were  obliged,  in  the  second  half  of  the 
summer,  to  shore  it  up  by  strong  timbers  fastened  to  its  masts. 
It  looked  no  longer  like  a  ship,  but  like  a  building  ready  to 
fall  in  !  In  the  middle  of  July  Lieutenant  Weyprecht  ordered 
Krisch,  the  engineer,  to  construct  heavy  chisels  and  borers  to 
ascertain  the  thickness  of  the  ice.  After  long  and  hard 
labour,  we  found  that  after  boring  through  several  ice-tables, 
to  a  depth  of  twenty-seven  feet,  we  still  struck  on  ice ! 
Every  attempt,  therefore,  to  break  through  this  accumulation 
had  to  be  given  up,  and  we  contented  ourselves  with  leading 
the  basin  we  had  formed  on  the  fore-part  round  the  larboard 
side  of  the  ship.  On  the  2^th  of  the  month,  twenty  tons  of 
coal  were  removed  to  the  ice,  in  order  to  lighten  the  ship  as 
much  as  possible,  and  every  day  we  had  to  look  to  the  props 
which  steadied  the  ship,  as  the  melting  of  the  ice  rendered 
them  unsafe.  In  the  following  weeks,  the  bows  continued  to 
sink  into  the  water,  while  the  after-part  as  a  natural  conse- 
quence was  raised  up. 

5.  Even  in  the  month  of  July,  the  weather  was  generally 
gloomy  and  unsettled.  We  had  several  times  two  or  three 
inches  of  snow,  and  the  showers  were  mingled  with  mist,  rain, 
and  snow,  as  had  been  the  case  in  June.  The  winds  were 
generally  from  the  west ;  the  mean  temperature  of  the  month 
was  347°  F.  ;  on  the  '8th  of  July,  the  black-bulb  thermometer 
marked  108°  F.,  and  the  temperature  in  the  shade  at 
the  same  date  amounted  to  34°  F.  But  neither  wind  nor  k 


166  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

temperature  made  any  change  in  our  position.  The  sun  on 
which  our  liberation  depended  was  seldom  visible  ;  and  the 
winds  on  which  he  had  counted  failed  to  blow.  For  weeks 
we  watched  for  the  formation  of  fissures  round  the  ship. 
Fissures  indeed  were  formed,  but  at  such  a  distance  th  at  they 
were  utterly  useless  to  us.  On  the  i6th  of  June,  one 
opened  towards  the  south-east ;  but  it  was  at  least  two  miles 
distant,  and  in  the  middle  of  July  it  was  only  half  a  mile 
nearer  to  us.  Nothing,  absolutely  nothing,  was  to  be  seen 
from  the  deck  but  ice,  and  Klotz,  coming  down  one  day  from 
the  top-sail  yard,  described  our  position  with  a  melancholy 
laconic  brevity :  "  Nix  als  Eisch,  und  nix  als  Eisch,  und  nit  a 
bisserl  a  Wosser.  (Nothing  but  ice,  ice  everywhere,  and  not  a 
patch  of  watery  Amid  such  impressions  all  hope  gradually 
left  us.  The  drifting  of  the  ice  ceased  to  animate  our  hopes. 
Even  the  approach  of  a  fissure  on  the  2Qth  of  July  to  the 
distance  of  three-quarters  of  a  mile,  in  consequence  of  heavy 
gales  from  the  south  and  west,  ended  in  miserable  disappoint- 
ment. A  movement  in  the  ice  which  began  a  little  way  off  on 
the  6th  of  August  resulted  only  in  the  diminishing  of  our  floe. 
There  was  no  essential  change  in  the  remainder  of  this 
month,  except  that  the  monthly  mean  temperature  fell  to 
327°  F.  We  had  the  greatest  extreme  of  heat  on  the  4th 
of  August,  4 1  -9°  F.  ;  but  on  the  last  day  of  the  month  we 
had  57  degrees  of  cold. 

6.  For  some  time  we  had  been  surprised  by  the  appear- 
ance of  a  dark  mass  of  ice,  the  distance  of  which  prevented 
us  from  making  a  closer  acquaintance  with  it.  Our  life  on 
the  narrow  space  of  our  floe  had  quite  assumed  the  character 
of  that  of  mere  insects,  who  dwell  on  the  leaf  of  a  tree  and 
care  not  to  know  its  edges.  Excursions  of  one  or  two  miles 
were  regarded  as  displaying  an  extraordinary  amount  of  the 
spirit  of  enterprise  and  discovery.  On  the  I4th  some  of 
us  pushed  on  for  about  four  miles  to  the  group  of  ice  just 
mentioned,  and  discovered  it  to  be  a  very  large  iceberg.  Two 
moraines  lay  on  its  broad  back.  -  These  were  the  first  stones 
and  pieces  of  rock  we  had  seen  for  a  long  time,  and  so  great 
was  our  joy  at  these  messengers  of  land,  that  we  rummaged 
about  among  the  heaps  of  rubbish,  with  as  much  zeal  as  if 


X.]  THE  SUMMER  OF  1873.  167 

we  had  found  ourselves  among  the  treasures  of  India.  Some 
of  the  party  found  what  they  fancied  to  be  gold  (pyrites),  and 
gravely  considered  whether  they  would  be  able  to  take  a 
quantity  of  it  back  to  Dalmatia.  Although  the  glaciers  of 
Novaya  Zemlya  could  not  shed  icebergs  of  such  magnitude 
as  that  on  which  we  now  stood,  we  all  held  it  for  certain  that 
it  had  come  from  thence.  Not  one  of  us  had  the  least  presenti- 
ment that  it  could  belong  to  new  lands,  to  which  at  that  time 
we  were  near.  Even  the  other  icebergs  which  we  discovered  in 
increasing  numbers  on  the  following  days,  did  not  as  yet 
speak  to  us  the  language  of  a  message  to  fill  us  with  hope 
and  ardour.  Our  walk  to  the  "  dirt  iceberg  "  was  an  event 
in  our  monotonous  life,  and  was  often  repeated.  These  expedi- 
tions enabled  us  also  to  form  some  conception  of  the  size  of 
our  floe,  the  diameter  of  which  could  not  be  less  than  six  or 
seven  miles. 

7.  August  1 8 — the  birthday  of  his  Majesty  our  Emperor, 
— the  ship  was  dressed  with  flags,  the  only  form  left  to  us  of 
expressing  our  loyalty,  Our  dinner  was  as  sumptuous  as  the 
circumstances  permitted,  though  fasting  would  have  been  more 
appropriate,  as  the  third  day  after  this  was  the  anniversary 
of  that  sad  and  gloomy  day  on  which  we  were  inclosed  in 
the  ice.  In  order  to  visit  an  iceberg  which  lay  to  the  north- 
west of  us,  we  ventured  beyond  our  floe  for  the  first  time,  and 
passed  over  a  fissure  to  some  drifting  ice-floes  which  lay  in 
the  way.  A  seal  lying  on  the  ice  was  immediately  attacked 
by  our  dogs,  but  succeeded  after  many  efforts  in  reaching  its 
hole.  From  the  top  of  the  iceberg,  which  was  about  sixty  feet 
high,  we  discovered  that  the  few  openings  in  the  ice  were  not 
navigable  "  leads,"  but  isolated  holes  utterly  unconnected,  and 
therefore  useless  for  navigation. 

.  8.  We  had  continually  drifted,  since  the  beginning  of 
February,  first  to  the  north-west  and  then  to  the  north,  with 
few  modifications  ;  at  that  date,  we  had  reached  our  greatest 
East  Longitude,  and  winds  appeared  as  before  to  be  the  main 
cause  of  this  drifting.  At  the  end  of  that  month  there  was 
a  succession  of  calms,  and  we  lay  almost  motionless  in 
latitude  79°,  and  longitude  71°.  The  subjoined  table  shows 
our  change  of  place  in  the  following  months. 


168 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


Time. 

Latitude. 

Longitude. 

Time. 

Latitude. 

Longitude. 

March  3,  1873 

79°  13' 

69°  32' 

Tune   27,  1873 

79°  137' 

59046-0' 

»    9   „ 

79  19 

68  28 

28   , 

79  I5-5 

59  35  '4 

M     M 

79  20 

68  28 

July    3   , 

79  IS'2 

59  H-S 

,    20   ,, 

79  33 

68  52 

,,     4 

79  14  '8 

59  I3-3 

,    25   „ 

79  23 

67  17 

8   , 

79  15  '2 

59  5'8 

27   „ 

79  15 

67  29 

10 

79  i3'2 

59  9'o 

29   ,, 

79  H 

67  35 

15 

79  9-8 

59  52-6 

April   2   ,, 

79  5 

66  49 

18   „ 

79  7  '3 

59  5o-4 

3   „ 

79  5 

66  42 

19     M 

79  7  '6 

59  35'i 

7     „ 

79  4 

— 

,      20    ,, 

79  87 

59  33'6 

10   „ 

79  12 

68  i 

21    ,, 

79  9'2 

59  33'i 

12   .„ 

79  19 

67  43 

,      22    „ 

79  9'o 

59  34'i 

13     M 

79  20 

67  40 

23*   „ 

79  6-6 

59  34'2 

»      J5     M 

79  14 

67  o 

24    ,, 

79  71 

59  29-5 

,   19  ,, 

79  18 

65  Si 

,25    „ 

79  6-6 

59  27-3 

20    ,, 

27 

79  19 
79  13  '5 

65  37 
64  37-0 

31     , 

August   i    , 

78  58-5 
78  56-9 

60  25-5 
60  40-6 

,   28   , 

79  12-2 

64  41  -8 

4 

79  0-4 

61  6-2 

May   I    , 

79  i5'8 

64  58-8 

13 

79  25-4 

61  6-6 

>.      2 

79  i7'i 

65  3  '9 

>    14   > 

79  24-5 

61  16-3 

,,    6 

79  i6'o 

65  0-5 

,    16   , 

79  27-8 

61  7-6 

10   , 

79  20-4 

65  4i-9 

19 

79  29-1 

61  31-0 

,,    II   , 

79  20  '2 

65  32-4 

,     21    , 

79  3  1  '3 

61  44-8 

13 

79  197 

65  15-8 

3° 

79  43'0 

60  237 

14 

79  19  '8 

64  45-6 

»    31 

79  42-5 

60  5-6 

„    16   , 

79  IS  '5 

63  39-0 

Sept.    2   , 

79  40-2 

60  32-9 

17 

79  i3'i 

63  217 

»            5        5 

79  4i-3 

60  12-5 

22 

79  9  '2 

62  3*5 

»     8   , 

79  34  '2 

59  47'3 

29 

79  2-4 

62  SB'S 

9 

79  33  '6 

59  45  "9 

30 

79  2-5 

62  54-2 

10 

79  32-2 

59  53'i 

31 

79  2-5 

62  53-9 

i,    16   » 

79  45  >6 

61  30-5 

June   I    , 

79  2-4 

62  43-2 

„    23 

79  49  '6 

61  58-1 

3 

79  0-4 

62  297 

3°   » 

79  58-3 

60  41-1 

5 

79  i  '3 

62  24-8 

Oct.   16 

79  54'6 

60  347 

6   , 

79  !'! 

62  20-2 

,,    19 

79  53'9 

60  40-6 

9 

79  5  "4 

61  31-4 

•23 

79  44'5 

60  7-9 

10 

79  5'3 

61  23-6 

26 

79  44'3 

59  17-1 

ii   , 

,    18   , 

79  4*3 
79  66 

61  21-3 
61  5-2 

;:  3  : 

79  44  'o 
79  43'8 

59  H'l 

59  6-6 

,    20   , 

79  8-6 

61  2-8 

29 

79  44-8 

59  9'8 

22 

79  9'2 

60  54-9 

30 

79  49  -o 

S8  59'9 

24 

79  8-4 

60  31-8 

„     31 

79  50-6 

58  537 

,     25    , 

79  1  1  -2 

60  14  '6 

Ship  in 

26   „ 

79  13  '3 

59  55'3 

Land  ice 

79  5i-i 

58  56-0 

9.  The  meteorological  observations  of  the  expedition,  and 
the  course  of  the  Tegetthoff,  have  been  ably  analysed  by  Vice- 
Admiral  Baron  von  Wiillersdorf-Urbair  in  the  MittheilungenoX. 
the  Imperial  Academy  of  Sciences  of  Vienna,  and  while  I  refer 
the  curious  reader  to  these  reports  for  a  fuller  discussion  of 
these  questions,  I  subjoin  the  most  important  paragraphs  of 


x.]  THE  SUMMER  OF  1873.  169 

the    Admiral's    report    which    concern    the    course    of    the 
Tegetthoff:— 

"Under  ordinary  circumstances  a  ship  drifts  on  with  the 
floe  ;  is  imprisoned,  and  necessarily  obeys  the  force  of  the 
wind  and  the  sea-currents.  Its  course,  consequently,  corre- 
sponds to  the  combined  effect  of  these  forces.  But,  inasmuch 
as  the  Tegetttoff  v&s  not  in  the  free  sea,  but  was  driven  along 
for  the  greater  part  of  the  time  in  close  pack-ice,  the  ship  not 
only  obeyed  the  general  movement  of  the  ice,  which  was 
dependent  on  the  direction  of  the  winds  and  currents  of  the 
sea,  but  was  also  influenced  by  its  vicinity  to  coasts  and  by 
the  greater  or  lesser  accumulation  of  ice. 

"  In  so  far  as  the  Tegetthoff  with  her  hull  and  masts  presented 
a  greater  surface  to  the  wind,  the  floe,  on  which  it  was 
imprisoned,  would  necessarily  receive  an  excess  of  movement 
in  the  direction  of  the  wind.  If  this  excess  formed  an  angle 
with  the  direction  of  the  movement  of  the  ice,  the  ship's  floe 
would  deviate  to  the  side  of  the  least  resistance,  and  drift 
according  to  the  resultant  between  wind  and  resistance.  Thus 
it  might  be  that  the  ship's  course  deviated  from  the  wind,  even . 
in  a  direction  opposed  to  it.  But  these  anomalies  certainly 
were  not  great,  and  could  not  well  be  estimated,  because  the 
deviations  which  thus  arose  depended  on  the  direction  of  the 
wind,  on  the  density  and  mass  of  the  ice,  on  causes,  in  fact, 
which  could  not  be  exhibited  under  numerical  relations. 

"  If  we  compare  the  statements,  as  given  in  the  Meteoro- 
logical Journal?-  concerning  the  ice-drift  and  ice-pressures,  it 
is  seen  that  the  maximum  of  both  occurred  in  those  parts  of 
the  sea  in  which  the  ship  was  within  the  action"*  of  the  ice 
coming  from  the  Sea  of  Kara,  and  that  the  greatest  deviations 
in  the  ship's  course  necessarily  happened  there. 
.  "  With  respect  to  another  abnormal  deviation  in  the  ship's 
course,  it  cannot  be  doubted  that  this  depended  on  the  vicinity 
of  Franz- Josef  Land,  towards  which  the  masses  of  ice  drifted 
under  the  action  of  continuous  south-west  winds  ;  and  were 
again  driven  back,  thus  forming  a  circle  in  their  movement.  It 
would  seem  natural  to  assume  the  existence  of  a  sea-current 
in  order  to  explain  this  peculiarity ;  but  the  configuration  of 
that  land  and  its  coasts,  or  the  greater  or  lesser  amount  of 
1  See  Appendix. 


i?o  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

immovable  ice,  or,  lastly,  the  prevailing  winds  in  those  regions, 
may  have  influenced  the  direction  of  the  movement  of  the  ice, 
and  consequently  of  the  ship's  course. 

"  If  we  consider  the  prevalence  of  winds,  as  furnished  by 
Weyprecht's  observations  for  more  than  two  years,  we  find 
south-west  winds  prevailing  in  the  southern  part  of  the  seas 
that  were  navigated,  and  north-east  winds  in  the  northern  part 
of  those  seas. 

"  If  the  sea  to  the  east  of  Franz-Josef  Land  should  not 
be  broken  by  larger  groups  of  islands,  or  by  masses  of 
land,  but  be  a  vast  range  of  ocean,  the  winds  would  be  free 
from  the  influence  of  land,  and  blow  in  a  north-easterly  direc- 
tion, and  exhibit,  so  to  speak,  the  phenomenon  of  a  Polar 
north-east  trade  wind.  If  it  should  be  the  case  that  north- 
east winds  prevail  to  the  north  of  the  78th  or  7Qth  degree 
of  north  latitude,  and,  at  the  same  time,  south-west  winds  to 
the  south  of  that  same  degree,  the  notion  of  a  sea-current 
must  be  dismissed,  and  a  revolving  movement  in  the  ice 
assumed,  in  the  opposite  direction  to  the  hands  of  a  clock. 
,The  observations  of  Weyprecht  on  these  winds  establish  their 
circulatory  character.  The  curve  of  deviation  in  the  course  of 
the  Tegetthoff  seems  to  be  in  harmony  with  this  assumption. 
But  these  suppositions  cannot  be  accepted,  until  observations 
be  made  on  the  winds  to  the  south  of  79°  N.  L.  at  the  same 
season  of  the  year  with  those  which  were  so  successfully  made 
by  Weyprecht  to  the  north  of  this  degree. 

"  The  following  arguments,  however,  would  seem  to  favour 
the  supposition  of  the  existence  of  a  sea-current.  The  curve 
at  the  commencement  of  its  deviation  'corresponds  pretty 
nearly  with  the  direction  which  the  Gulf  Stream  would 
take  after  passing  round  Norway,  and  in  its  further  course 
with  that  current,  which  comes  out  of  the  Sea  of  Kara 
between  Novaya  Zemlya  and  Cape  Taimyr,  and  which  un- 
doubtedly exists,  though  its  course  has  to  be  more  accurately 
determined. 

"  However  small  may  be  the  value  we  assign  to  the  winds 
in  explanation  of  the  deviation  in  the  Tegetthoffs  course,  it  is 
at  any  rate  impossible  to  ascribe  those  phenomena  to  the 
influence  of  the  coast  formation.  We  must,  therefore,  assume 
either,  that  the  different  directions  of  the  wind  produce  a 


THE  SUMMER  OF  1873. 


171 


constant  circulation  of  the  ice  in  the  sea  to  the  north  of  79° ; 
or  that  currents  known  to  exist  in  this  and  contiguous  seas 
cannot  be  excluded  from  the  small  part  of  the  ocean  lying 
between  Novaya  Zemlya  and  Franz-Josef  Land." 

From  these  and  other  grounds  the  Vice- Admiral  Baron  von 
Wiillersdorf  draws  the  following  conclusions  : — 

"  It  is  probable  that  there  exists  a  sea-current  in  the  seas 
between  Novaya  Zemlya  and  Franz-Josef  Land  ;  that  at  any 
rate,  its  existence  cannot  positively  be  denied,  although  the 
prevailing  winds  may  produce  similar  phenomena. 

"  That  there  is  a  great  probability  that  the  Ocean  stretches 
far  to  the  north  and  east  beyond  the  eastern  end  of  Novaya 
Zemlya." 


SOUNDING   IN   THE   FROZEN   OCEAN. 


10.  During  the  summer  Orel  took  soundings  of  the  depth 
of  the  sea,  which  he  was  prevented  from  continuing  in  the 
winter  by  the  frost.  These  show  its  shallowness  on  the  north 
of  Novaya  Zemlya,  especially  towards  Franz-Josef  Land,  A 
bank,  over  which  we  drifted  in  the  summer  of  1873,  and  which 
we  explored  with  a  drag-net,  was  the  principal  source  of  the 
collection  of  marine  fauna,  which  we  shall  speak  of  in  a  later 
chapter.  These  soundings  also  enabled  Orel  to  prove  the 
small  increase  of  the  temperature  of  the  sea  at  any  consider- 
able depth.  He  used  in  his  experiments  the  maximum  and 
minimum  thermometer  of  Casella.  The  specimens  we  col- 


172 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP.  x. 


lected  showed,  that  the  bottom  of  the  sea  consists  of  layers 
of  mud  and  shells.  The  soundings  are  exhibited  in  the 
following  table  : — 


Time. 

Metres. 

Time. 

Metres. 

Time. 

Metres. 

July  20,  1872 

400 

June  19,  1873 

,86 

Aug.  9,  1873 

244 

,,    28   „ 

"5 

,,    20   ,, 

220 

,,    IO 

225 

.,    31   „ 

250 

,,    21   ,, 

195 

>  >    II 

209 

Aug.  3  „ 

130 

»    22   ,, 

20O 

i    I2 

2I4 

„    4  „ 

80 

»    23   „ 

I69 

,    '3 

I89 

22  ,, 

36 

I78 

I  14 

177 

„   30  „ 

170 

\\    25   \\ 

195 

I  15 

170 

Sept.  16  „ 

IOO 

„   26  „ 

220 

16 

170 

i>   25  „ 

90 

II  27  „ 

227 

,   17 

174 

„   29  „ 

85 

„  28  „ 

233 

,   18 

I48 

30  i, 

190 

»»  29  , 

240 

,   19 

1$2 

Oct.   2  ,, 

170 

I,  30  , 

240 

,   20 

138 

9  i, 

450 

July   I   , 

240 

,    21 

130 

Nov.  14  ,, 

345 

>i    3   > 

245 

i    22 

131 

Jan.  28,1873 

4   , 

250 

,    23 

128 

Mar.  27  „ 

45° 

5   , 

235 

,    24 

145 

April  28  „ 

350 

6   , 

235 

,    25 

140 

May  1  7  . 

230 

7   i 

274 

26 

185 

„   18  „ 

187 

„    8   , 

266 

27 

219 

19  i, 

172 

9   • 

250 

28 

180 

„    20   ,, 

I63 

»   10  , 

250 

29 

132 

,,    21   „ 

138 

,,   ii   , 

236 

>   3° 

211 

;,    22   „ 

1  86 

»    12   , 

265 

,   3i 

197 

ii    23   „ 

162 

i.    13    . 

247 

Sept.  i 

26o 

ii    25   „ 

177 

14   i 

215 

2 

142 

.i    25   „ 

182 

15   i 

J95 

3 

212 

»    26   „ 

1  86 

„   16   , 

184 

4 

215  „ 

i,    27   „ 

249 

„  17  I 

200 

178 

,i    28   „ 

251 

18   , 

240 

>>    6 

188 

»    29   „ 

254 

»   19   , 

232 

7 

204 

„    30   „ 

253 

,,    20   , 

231 

„    8 

250 

„   3i  „ 
June  i  ,, 

256 
238 

11    21    , 

,,    22   , 

23I 
226 

9 

240 
218 

2  „ 

210 

„    23 

I98 

UN 

168 

3  „ 

183 

205 

!>'   l2 

127 

4  i, 

207 

i>    25 

216 

i>   i3 

132 

jj    5  » 

2OO 

,,    26 

218 

,,   14 

I98 

„    27 

218 

in 

„    7  , 

190 

„    28 

236 

16 

134 

»   8  , 

215 

„    29 

260 

>'!  17 

178 

9  . 

231 

„    30 

236 

„   18 

'75 

,    10   , 

203 

»    31 

234 

,,   19 

275 

ii  , 

240 

Aug.  i 

225 

„    20 

300 

;  12  , 

218 

,,     2 

219 

„    21   , 

220 

,  13  , 

211 

3 

J73 

,,    22   , 

1  88 

*  14  , 

235 

4 

1  88 

i.    24   » 

237 

,  15  i 

161 

»    5 

2IO 

„    25   , 

325 

»   16   , 

184 

ii    6 

I07 

Oct.  28   , 

.165 

.   17   , 

222 

7 

216 

31 

2IO 

,   18  , 

200 

8 

I84 

CHAPTER  XL 

NEW  LANDS. 

I.  WE  spent  the  latter  half  of  August  in  seal-hunting,  for  it 
was  only  by  the  use  of  fresh  meat  that  we  were  able  to 
contend  with,  if  not  prevent,  cases  of  scurvy.  Day  after  day 
lines  of  hunters  lay  in  wait  before  the  fissures  at  the  edge  of 
our  floe,  and  in  the  evening  our  dogs  generally  had  to  drag  in 
the  sledges  several  seals  to  the  ship.  Many  of  these  creatures 
which  we  wounded  sank  and  disappeared.  All  these  seals 
belonged  to  the  class  Phoca  Groenlandica.  Walruses  were 
never  to  be  seen,  and  once  only  in  an  "ice-hole"  we  came 
across  a  shoal  of  white  whales,  which  however  seemed  to  be 
moving  on.  In  the  capture  of  seals  we  sometimes  used  a 
light  boat,  made  of  water-proof  sailcloth,  which  two  men 
could  easily  drag  out  of  the  water.  Some  of  our  people  too 
had  learnt  the  use  of  the  harpoon.  By  the  end  of  September 
we  had  killed  in  one  way  or  another  some  forty  seals,  and  as 
we  shot  many  of  the  birds  which  flew  round  us,  and  on  an 
average  one  bear  a  week,  we  were  seldom  without  fresh  meat. 
With  the  exception  of  Krisch,  the  engineer,  who  suffered 
from  lung  disease,  and  of  the  carpenter,  who  had  become 
lame  from  a  scorbutic  contraction  of  the  joints,  all  on  the  sick 
list  recovered  under  the  influence  of  work  in  the  open  air  and 
of  the  improved  diet. 

2.  The  covering  of  deep  soft  snow,  which  had  been  so 
troublesome,  almost  disappeared  at  the  beginning  of  autumn, 
and  the  surface  of  the  ice  had  been  transformed  by  evapora- 
tion into  a  firm  mass  like  the  congealed  snow  of  a  glacier,  so 
that  we  were  able  to  walk  on  its  hard  surface  without  sinking  ; 


174  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

only  the  numerous  small  ice-lakes,  on  the  floes,  impeded  our 
excursions.  In  all  these  signs,  we  were  reminded  of  the  near 
approach  of  winter,  and  it  seemed  that,  drifting  as  we  were 
constantly  towards  the  north,  we  should  spend  it  nearer  to 
the  Pole  than  any  other  expedition  had  ever  done.  On  the 
25th  the  sun  set  at  midnight.  The  period  intervening  be- 
tween this  and  the  time  when  the  sun  ceases  to  reappear 
may  be  regarded  as  the  autumn  of  the  Arctic  region.  For 
some  time  the  light  had  so  diminished,  that  our  quarters  again 
became  dark  at  night,  and  from  the  iQth  of  July  we  were , 
obliged  to  use  a  light  in  order  to  read  at  midnight.  On  the 
29th  of  August,  after  falls  of  rain  and  snow  succeeded  by 
north  winds,  the  ship  was  stiffened  in  a  coating  of  ice.  The 
rigging  was  covered  with  an  incrustation  of  ice  of  an  inch 
thick,  and  pieces  of  ice  of  a  pound  weight  sometimes  fell 
on  the  deck,  rendering  walking  on  it  neither  comfortable  nor 
safe.  After  a  succession  of  frosts  and  thaws,  complete  con- 
gelation at  last  set  in,  and  when  the  moon  was  up,  the  masts 
and  rigging  shone  like  burnished  silver. 

3.  The  second  summer  was  gone.     It  had  come  in  with  the 
hope  and  promise  of  liberation,  and  patiently  had  we  awaited 
this  result.     With  sad  resignation  we  now  looked  forward  to 
another  winter.     But  once  more  it  was  to  be  seen,  in  our  case, 
how  great  is  the  power  of  men  to  endure  dangers  and  hard- 
ships, when  these  come  upon  them  not  suddenly  but  gradually. 
A  few  months  ago,  the  thought  that  we  should  be  prisoners 
on  the  ice,  bound  to  our  floe,  for  a  second  winter,  would  have 
been  unendurable.     But  now  that  the  intolerable  thought  had 
become  a  stern  fact,  we  accepted  and  endured  it.     But  often 
as  we  went  on  deck  and  cast  our  eyes  over  the  wastes,  from 
which  there  was  no  escape,  the  despairing  thought  recurred, 
that   next   year  we   should   have   to  return   home — without 
having  achieved  anything,  or  at  most  with  a  narrative  of  a 
long  drift  on  the  ice.     Not  a  man  among  us  believed  in  the 
possibility   of    discoveries,  though    discoveries    beyond    our 
utmost  hopes  lay  immediately  before  us. 

4.  A  memorable  day  was  the  3Oth  August  1873,  in  79°  43' 
Lat.  and  59°  33'  E.  Long.     That  day  brought  a  surprise,  such 
as  only  the  awakening  to  a  new  life  can  produce.     About 
midday,  as  we  were  leaning  on  the  bulwarks  of  the  ship  and 


XL]  NEW  LANDS.  175 


scanning  the  gliding  mists,  through  which  the  rays  of  the  sun 
broke  ever  and  anon,  a  wall  of  mist,  lifting  itself  up  suddenly, 
revealed  to  us,  afar  off  in  the  north-west,  the  outlines  of  bold 
rocks,  which  in  a  few  minutes  seemed  to  grow  into  a  radiant 
Alpine  land !  At  first  we  all  stood  transfixed  and  hardly 
believing  what  we  saw.  Then,  carried  away  by  the  reality  of 
our  good  fortune,  we  burst  forth  into  shouts  of  joy — "  Land, 
Land,  Land  at  last ! "  There  was  now  not  a  sick  man  on 
board  the  Tegetthoff.  The  news  of  the  discovery  spread  in 
an  instant.  Every  one  rushed  on  deck,  to  convince  himself 
with  his  own  eyes,  that  the  expedition  was  not  after  all  a 
failure — there  before  us  lay  the  prize  that  could  not  be 
snatched  from  us.  Yet  not  by  our  own  action,  but  through 
the  happy  caprice  of  our  floe  and  as  in  a  dream  had  we  won 
it,  but  when  we  thought  of  the  floe,  drifting  without  inter- 
mission, we  felt  with  redoubled  pain,  that  we  were  at  the 
mercy  of  its  movements.  As  yet  we  had  secured  no  winter 
harbour,  from  which  the  exploration  of  the  strange  land 
could  be  successfully  undertaken.  For  the  present,  too,  it 
was  not  within  the  verge  of  possibility  to  reach  and  visit  it. 
If  we  had  left  our  floe,  we  should  have  been  cut  off  and  lost. 
It  was  only  under  the  influence  of  the  first  excitement  that 
we  made  a  rush  over  our  ice-field,  although  we  knew  that 
numberless  fissures  made  it  impossible  to  reach  the  land. 
But,  difficulties  notwithstanding,  when  we  ran  to  the  edge  of 
our  floe,  we  beheld  from  a  ridge  of  ice  the  mountains  and 
glaciers  of  the  mysterious  land.  Its  valleys  seemed  to  our 
fond  imagination  clothed  with  green  pastures,  over  which 
herds  of  reindeer  roamed  in  undisturbed  enjoyment  of  their 
liberty,  and  far  from  all  foes. 

5.  For  thousands  of  years  this  land  had  lain  buried  from 
the  knowledge  of  men,  and  now  its  discovery  had  fallen  into 
the  lap  of  a  small  band,  themselves  almost  lost  to  the  world, 
who  far  from  their  home  remembered  the  homage  due  to 
their  sovereign,  and  gave  to  the  newly-discovered  territory  the 
name 

KAISER  FRANZ-JOSEF'S  LAND. 

With  loud  hurrahs  we  drank  to  the  health  of  our  Emperor 
in  grog  hastily  made  on  deck  in  an  iron  coffee-pot,  and  then 


176  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

dressed  the  Tegetthoff  with  flags.  All  cares,  for  the  present 
at  least,  disappeared,  and  with  them  the  passive  monotony 
of  our  lives.  There  was  not  a  day,  there  was  hardly  an  hour, 
in  which  this  mysterions  land  did  not  henceforth  occupy  our 
thoughts  and  attention.  We  discussed  whether  this  or  that 
elevation  in  the  grey  and  misty  distance  were  a  mountain,  or 
an  island,  or  a  glacier.  All  our  attempts  to  solve  the  question 
of  the  extent  of  the  land  lying  before  us  were  of  course  still 
more  fruitless.  From  the  headland  which  we  had  first  seen 
(Cape  Tegetthoff),  to  its  hazy  outline,  in  the  north-east,  it 
seemed  to  extend  nearly  a  degree;  but  as  even  its  southern- 
most parts  were  at  a  great  distance  from  us,  it  was  impossible 
to  arrive  at  anything  more  definite  than  a  mere  approxima- 
tion to  its  configuration.  The  size  and  number  of  the  ice- 
bergs which  we  had  recently  fallen  in  with  were  now  amply 
explained, — they  were  indisputable  witnesses  of  its  great 
extent  and  its  vast  glaciation. 

6.  At  the  end  of  August  and  the  beginning  of  September 
north  winds  drove  us  somewhat  towards  the  south,  so  that 
the  outlines  of  the  land  were  still  more  faintly  defined.  But 
at  the  end  of  September  we  were  again  driven  towards  the 
north-west  and  reached  79°  58',  the  highest  degree  of  latitude 
to  which  the  Tegetthoff  and  its  floe  drifted.  We  now  saw  an 
island  at  some  distance  off — afterwards  called  Hochstetter 
island — lying  before  us.  Its  rocky  outlines  were  distinctly 
visible,  and  the  opportunity  of  reaching  the  land  by  a  forced 
march  seemed  more  favourable  than  any  which  had  been  pre- 
sented. It  might  also  be  the  last  chance  offered  to  us,  for  our 
fears  lest  we  might  drift  out  of  sight  of  this  land  were  well 
founded.  Six  of  her  crew  now  left  the  Tegetthoff  and  com- 
mitted themselves  to  the  destiny  which  the  movement  of  the 
ice  had  in  store  for  them.  The  east  winds,  which  had  pre- 
vailed during  the  last  days,,  had  forced  the  ice  landward,  and 
the  pressures  had  crushed  in  the  edges  of  our  floe,  and  greatly 
diminished  its  size.  We  rushed  over  the  grinding,  groaning^ 
broken  walls  of  drifting  ice,  and  so  great  was  our  ardour,  that 
we  took  no  notice  when  some  one  or  other  of  the  party 
tripped  and  fell.  Each  panted  to  reach  the  land.  We  had 
already  gone  half  way,  the  ship  having  long  disappeared  from 
our  eyes,  when  there  arose  a  mist  which  enveloped  everything, 


XL]  NEW  LANDS.  177 

so  that  the  masses  of  ice  looked  like  high  mountains  through 
the  hazy  atmosphere.  Of  the  land  itself  we  could  see  nothing, 
and  no  choice  was  left  to  us  but  to  return  to  the  ship  through 
the  mist.  The  compass  was  little  help,  and  within  the  barriers 
of  recently  broken  ice  the  traces  of  our  steps  were  lost.  We 
took  at  last  a  wrong  direction  and  were  following  it  up,  in 
spite  of  Jubinal's  loud  barks  to  divert  us.  As  he  ran  back- 
wards and  forwards,  magnified  in  the  mist  he  ran  many  risks 
of  being  mistaken  for  a  bear.  What  the  sagacity  of  six  men 
could  not  do,  this  the  instinct  of  the  animal  effected.  Ex- 
hausted by  our  own  exertions,  we  yielded  ourselves  to  his 
guidance,  and  he  actually  brought  us  into  the  right  track — 
and  back  to  the  ship. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

THE  AUTUMN  OF    18/3. — THE  STRANGE  LAND   VISITED. 

I.  THE  autumn  was  unusually  mild,  though  stormy  and 
gloomy.  The  thermometer  up  to  the  2Oth  of  September  fell 
daily  some  degrees  below  zero  (C.),  and  occasionally  we  had 
rain.  At  the  end  of  the  month  the  minimum  temperature 
ranged  from  14°  to  5°  F.,  and  the  mean  temperature  of 
the  month  was  as  low  as  24-5°  F.  The  mildness  of  the 
season  was,  perhaps,  connected  with  the  unusual  recession  of 
the  ice-barrier  in  the  south ;  though  it  might  have  been  a  con- 
sequence of  the  open  water  which  had  been  formed  under  the 
land  during  the  drifting  of  the  floes.  The  land  itself  was  but 
seldom  visible,  and  heavy  masses  of  dark-blue  clouds,  which 
are  peculiar  to  southern  latitudes,  generally  hung  over  it. 
Frequent  falls  of  snow  again  covered  everything  around  us. 
Parhelia  were  sometimes  visible,  and  these  were  generally  the 
precursors  of  driving  snow,  which  reared  deep  drifts  round 
the  ship.  The  numerous  little  lakes  on  the  ice-floes  were 
frozen  over  in  the  night  even  in  the  earlier  part  of  August, 
and  at  the  end  of  the  month  these  bore  us  during  the  day. 
The  clear  mirror  of  their  surface  cracked  whenever  the  tem- 
perature fell  suddenly  some  degrees,  while  the  effect  of  con- 
traction in  the  ship  was  followed  by  the  noises  which  we 
called  "  Schiisse."  The  "  ice-holes "  were  overspread  with  a 
viscous  ropy  ice,  which  was  strong  enough  to  bear  us  at 
their  edges.  The  ship  now  stood  out  from  the  ice ;  her 
hull  was  about  fourteen  feet  above  the  surrounding  surface  of 
snow.  To  facilitate  egress  and  ingress,  we  constructed  steps 
of  ice  on  each  side  of  the  vessel.  After  the  /th  of  September 
our  efforts  to  free  the  ship  were  given  up.  The  little  basin  at 


CHAP,  xii.]  THE  AUTUMN  OF  1873.  179 

the  fore-part  of  the  ship— the  result  of  the  toil  of  many 
months — was  completely  frozen  over,  and  afforded  us  the 
recreation  of  skating  as  a  reward  for  our  labours. 

2.  The  experience  of  the  past  greatly  strengthened  all  the 
grounds  and  motives  which  so  readily  presented  themselves 
to  abandon  our  helpless  vessel  in  the  following  summer  and 
attempt   the   return   to    Europe   by   means   of   sledges    and 
boats.     If   there  had  been  no  other  reason   for  this  resolu- 
tion, regard  for  our  health   would   have  dictated   the   step. 
Our  supply  of  lemon-juice  was  so  reduced,  as  to  leave  scarcely 
a  doubt  as  to  the  necessity  of  attempting  to  return.      But 
amid  these  prudential  considerations,  we  were  filled  with  fear 
lest  we  should  be  unable  to  explore  the  mysterious  land  we 
had  discovered. 

3.  The  daylight  now  began  to  fail.     On  the  Qth  of  Sep- 
tember the  sun  set  at  8.30  and  the  stars  were  visible  at  night. 
About  the  middle  of  the  month  lamps  were  kept  burning  all 
the  night  through  in  our  quarters  below,  and  our  environment, 
never  very  animated,  again  wore  the  aspect  of  the  dark  realm 
of  ice.     The  visits  of  birds  became  rarer,  although  they  did 
not  quite  leave  us  as  long  as  there  was  any  open  water  near. 
The  divers  and  auks  had  already  disappeared.     They  flew  in 
long  lines  southward,  and  as  they  whizzed  past  us  through 
the  rigging  of  the  ship,  w£  acknowledged  the  superiority  of 
these  little  creatures  to  us  and  to  our  ship,  which  was  never 
to  hoist  its  sails  again.     The  ice-birds,  and  the  robber-gulls 
still  remained  with  us.     We  once  shot  a  rose-coloured  gull 
(Ross's   gull),   said  to   belong   only  to  North  America   and 
Iceland.     On  the  28th  we  saw  the  last  snow-bunting.     The 
first  aurora  was  seen  on  the  22nd,  and  during  the  winter  its 
light  fell  not  merely  on  the  Frozen  Ocean  but  on  the  distant 

"  Franz-Josefs  Land,  showing  us  that  we  were  not  drifting  away 
from  it.  By  the  end  of  the  month  we  had  drifted  to  the 
eightieth  degree  of  latitude,  nearly ;  and  every  cliff  of  the 
land,  even  the  most  insignificant,  emerging  at  a  distance  from 
the  ice,  had  charms  enough  to  call  us  all  on  deck. 

4.  In  the  second  half  of  October,  winds  from  the  north  and 
north-east  had  driven  us  towards  the  south  and  south-west, 
and  as  we  neared  the  land  we  saw  that  the  ice-fields  were 
broken  up  by  their  contact  with  its  immovable  barrier.     Our 


i8o  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

own  floe  had  been  greatly  diminished  from  the  general  pres- 
sure of  the  ice.  On  the  1st  of  October  we  were  driven  so 
near  the  land  that  we  found  ourselves  in  the  midst  of  the 
destruction  going  on  in  the  ice.  Our  ice-floe  was  shattered 
and  broken,  and  so  rapidly  had  it  diminished  in  size,  that  the 
distance  of  the  ship  from  the  edge  of  the  floe,  which  was 
1,300  paces  on  the  1st,  amounted  to  only  875  two  days  after- 
wards. On  the  6th  it  had  diminished  to  200  paces,  so  that  it 
was  reduced  to  a  mere  fragment  of  its  former  size.  The 
shocks  it  now  received  caused  the  ship  to  quiver  and  shake, 
and  we  heard  the  cracking  and  straining  in  its  timbers,  which 
kept  us  on  the  tenter-hook  of  expectation  lest  the  ice  should 
suddenly  break  up.  It  seemed  as  if  we  were  doomed  to  a 
repetition  of  the  trials  and  dangers  of  the  preceding  winter. 
The  bags  of  necessaries  to  be  taken  with  us  if  we  should  be 
forced  to  leave  the  ship,  were  kept  in  readiness  for  immediate 
use.  As  we  watched  the  advancing  wall  of  ice,  and  heard 
the  too  well  known  howl  it  sent  forth,  and  saw  how  fissures 
were  formed  at  the  edge  of  the  floe,  the  days  of  the  ice- 
pressures  were  painfully  recalled,  and  the  thought  constantly 
returned — what  will  be  the  end  of  all  this  ?  The  Land  we 
had  so  longed  to  visit  lay  indeed  before  us,  but  the  very  sight 
of  it  had  become  a  torment ;  it  seemed  to  be  as  unattainable 
as  before ;  and,  if  our  ship  should  reach  it,  it  appeared  too 
likely  that  it  would  be  as  a  wreck  on  its  inhospitable  shore. 
Many  were  the  plans  we  formed  and  debated,  but  all  were 
alike  impracticable,  and  all  owed  their  existence  to  the  wish 
to  escape  from  the  destruction  that  stared  us  in  the  face. 
Such  were  our  out-looks  when  on  the  3ist  of  October  we  were 
driven  close  to  a  headland  of  no  great  height,  about  three 
miles  distant  from  the  ship,  and  found  ourselves  in  the  midst 
of  icebergs,  several  of  which  were  of  considerable  magnitude. 
Towards  this,  the  bergs,  or  we  ourselves,  or  both,  were 
rapidly  drifting,  as  the  soundings  showed.  If  the  icebergs 
drifted  they  would  of  course  crush  all  the  ice-fields  which 
stood  in  their  way.  We  were  now  in  79°  51'  N.  Lat. 
and  58°  56'  E.  Long.  Here  exactly  in  the  longitude  of 
Admiralty  peninsula  of  Novaya  Zemlya,  and  with  the  ship 
lying  north  and  south,  we  were  to  pass  the  winter — but 
harbourless. 


xii.]  THE  AUTUMN  OF  1873.  181 

5.  On  the  forenoon  of  the  1st  of  November,  the  land  lay 
to  the  north-west  of  us  in  the  twilight.     The  lines  of  rocks 
were  so  clearly  and  distinctly  seen,  that  we  were  convinced 
that  it  could  be  reached  without  endangering  our  return  to 
the  ship.     There  was  no  room  for  hesitation  ;  full  of  energy 
and  wild  excitement,  we  clambered  over  the  ice-walls  lying  to 
the  northward,  which  consisted  of  barriers,  fifty  feet  high,  of 
huge   pieces   of   ice   recently   forced    up   amid  the  pressure. 
These   passed,  we   came   on  a  broad  surface  of  young  ice, 
which  showed  that  there  had  been  open  water  there  a  short 
time  before.     Over  the  surface  of  this  young  ice  we  now  ran 
towards   the    land.     We    crossed   the    ice-foot   and   actually 
stepped  on  it.     Snow  and  rocks  and  broken  ice  surrounded  us 
on  every  side  ;  a  land  more  desolate  could  not  be  found  on 
earth  than  the  island  we  walked  on  ;  all  this  we  saw  not.     To 
us  it  was  a  paradise ;  and  this  paradise  we  called  Wilczek 
Island. 

6.  So  great  was  our  joy  at  having  reached  the  Land  at  last, 
that  we  bestowed  on  all  we  sa'w  an  attention  which,  in  itself 
it  in  no  way  merited.     We  looked  into  every  rent  in  the  rocks^ 
we  touched  every  block,  we  were  ravished  with  the  varied 
forms  and  outlines  which  each  crevice  presented.     We  talked 
in  grand  style  of  the  frozen  slopes  of  its  hollows  as  glaciers  ! 
Nothing  was  of  greater  moment  in  these  first  hours  than  the 
question  of  its  geological  character,  and  great  was  our  surprise 
to   find   here   the   same   rocks,  with  which  we  had  become 
acquainted   at    the    Pendulum    Islands   during    the    second 
German  North  Polar  Expedition.     The  columnar  conforma- 
tion of  these  Dolerite  rocks  singularly  resembled  those  of 
Griper   Roads   and    Shannon    Island.      The   vegetation   was 
indescribably  meagre  and  miserable,  consisting  merely  of  a 
few  lichens.     The   drift-wood  we  expected    to  find   was   no 
where  to  be  seen.     We  looked  for  traces  of  the  reindeer  and 
the  fox,   but    our   search   was    utterly  fruitless.      The   land 
appeared   to  be  without  a  single  living  creature.     We  then 
ascended  a  rocky  height  on  the  southern  margin  of  the  island, 
whence  we  had  a  view  of  the  frozen  ocean  extending  some 
miles  beyond  the  ship.     There  was  something  sublime  to  the 
imagination   in   the  utter   loneliness  of  a  land  never  before 
visited ;  felt  all  the  more  from  the  extraordinary  character  of 


182  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 


our  position.  We  had  become  exceedingly  sensitive  to  new 
impressions,  and  a  golden  mist  which  rose  on  the  southern 
horizon  of  an  invisible  ice-hole,  and  which  spread  itself,  like 
an  undulating  curtain,  before  the  glow  of  the  noontide 
heavens,  had  to  us  the  charm  of  a  landscape  in  Ceylon. 

7-  How  vexatious  was  it  to  feel,  that  if  we  had  reached 
this  Land  some  weeks  earlier,  we  might  have  explored  it 
without  the  risk  of  being  cut  off  from  the  ship.  For  some 
days  the  sun  had  sunk  below  the  horizon,  and  the  twilight 
of  noon  admitted  of  only  a  few  short  excursions  from  the 
ship,  quite  insufficient  to  satisfy  our  earnest  desire  to  learn 
more  of  its  structure  and  configuration  ;  and  we  much  feared 
lest  the  constant  north  winds  should  cause  us  to  drift  out 
of  sight  of  it.  Southwards  stretched  a  flat  surface  of  bluish- 
grey  ice,  and  beyond  the  distant  ship,  a  large  "ice-hole" 
from  whose  yellow  mirror  there  arose  undulating  mists. 
Beyond  this  again  stretched  dark  lines  of  floes  running 
parallel  to  the  horizon,  over  which,  in  the  south,  hung  the 
sky  in  deep  carmine.  We  scrambled  over  a  rugged  slope 
covered  with  ice  as  smooth  as  glass,  which  ran  into  the 
interior  of  the  little  island,  in  order  to  get  a  clear  view 
northward  ;  but  we  were  compelled  to  return  without  achiev- 
ing our  purpose,  for  we  feared  to  absent  ourselves  longer 
from  the  ship.  We  accordingly  went  back,  but  returned 
next  day  to  explore.  But  these  barren  days  and  small 
events  made  a  profound  impression  on  our  minds,  and  even 
Carlsen,  the  old  and  tried  navigator  of  the  frozen  deep,  wore 
on  his  breast,  beneath  his  fur  coat,  the  star  of  the  order 
of  St.  Olaf,  to  do  due  honour  to  the  dignity  of  discovery. 
We  built  a  pyramid  of  stones  six  feet  high  on  the  island, 
and  fixed  in  it  one  of  our  flags  attached  to  a  pole. 

8.  On  the  3rd  of  November  a  party  of  us  started  about 
eight  o'clock  in  the  morning,  when  it  was  quite  dark,  to 
attempt  to  reach  a  glacier  which  we  had  seen,  on  the  north 
of  the  island  and  on  the  other  side  of  a  frozen  inlet  of  the 
sea.  We  took  with  us  a  small  sledge  drawn  by  three  dogs, 
and,  in  constant  fear  of  being  cut  off  from  .the  ship,  we  pressed 
on  over  a  level  surface  of  snow  towards  some  objects  suffused 
with  a  dim  rosy  light,  which  seemed  to  float  over  them.  As 
we  neared  them  we  found  them  to  be  icebergs,  which  sparkled 


XII.] 


THE  AUTUMN   OF  1873. 


183 


like  jewels,  and  which  we  took  to  be  the  terminal  precipice 
of  the  glacier  we  were  in  search  of.  It  was  only,  however, 
after  some  hours  that  we  came  actually  in  sight  of  it ;  the 
ship  having  meanwhile  disappeared  from  our  view.  Suddenly 
there  emerged  before  us,  in  the  east,  a  white  band,  which 
proved  to  be  the  terminal  front  of  the  glacier,  which,  as  we 
approached  it,  we  were  surprised  to  find  had  an  inclination  of 
only  two  or  three  degrees.  Its  highest  point,  therefore,  must 
have  been  at  a  very  great  distance.  On  its  left  side  there 
was  a  moraine,  of  great  depth.  When  we  began  our  return 
to  the  ship,  the  rosy  evening  light  had  disappeared  from  the 


APPROACHING   THR   LAND    BY   MOONLIGHT. 


higher  clouds,  while  it  became  clearer  behind  the  gigantic 
.mass  of  the  glacier,  so  that  its  dark  outline  stood  out  strongly 
marked  on  the  heavens.  It  was  quite  dark  when  we  again 
drew  near  the  ship,  but  the  brave  Carlsen,  armed  with  rifle 
and  walrus-lance  for  any  emergency,  came  out  to  meet  us. 

9.  In  an  excursion  on  the  6th  of  November  we  reached 
a  point  on  the  north-west  of  Wilczek  Island — passing  for  the 
first  time  during  this  expedition  beyond  the  eightieth  degree 
of  north  latitude — whence  we  could  see  the  mainland  of  the 
new  country  stretching  before  us  under  the  silver  light  of  the 


1 84  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  xn. 

moon.  An  indescribable  loneliness  lay  on  its  snowy  moun- 
tains, faintly  illuminated  by  the  span  of  twilight  in  the  south 
and  by  the  light  of  the  moon.  If  the  ice  on  the  shore,  as  it 
was  moved  by  the  ebb  and  flow  of  the  tide,  had  not  sent  forth 
shrill  notes,  and  had  not  the  wind  sighed  as  it  passed  over 
the  edges  of  the  rocks,  the  stillness  of  death  would  have  lain 
on  the  pale  and  spectral  landscape.  We  hear  of  the  solemn 
silence  of  the  forest  or  of  the  desert,  or  of  a  city  buried  in 
sleep  during  the  night ;  but  what  is  this  silence  to  the  silence 
of  a  land  wth  its  cold  glacier  mountains  losing  themselves  in 
snows  and  mists  which  can  never  be  explored,  and  the  very 
existence  of  which  had  remained  unknown  from  creation  till 
this  moment  ? 

10.  On  the  /th  another  short  expedition  towards  the  south- 
west of  Wilczek  Island  was  carried  out ;  but  notwithstanding 
all  our  exertions  we  were  unable  to  determine  its  configuration, 
even  of  the  parts  immediately  contiguous  to  us.  Until  the 
spring  of  the  following  year,  the  whole  island,  except 
perhaps  a  portion  of  its  southern  side,  remained  a  mystery 
to  us. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

OUR   SECOND   WINTER  IN   THE  ICE. 

I.  THE  Land  had  meantime  been  thickly  enveloped  in  its 
pure  white  mantle,  and  wreaths  of  snow-drifts  lay  over  the 
rocks  scattered  over  its  surface.  The  light  became  fainter. 
Sometimes  the  precipitous  faces  of  the  glaciers  seemed  to 
glow  in  subdued  rose-colour  through  the  leaden  grey  of  the 
atmosphere.  When  new  "  ice-holes  "  appeared,  a  frosty  vapour 
rose  and  spread  over  the  surface  of  the  ice  ;  the  ship  and 
surrounding  objects  were  covered  as  if  with  down  ;  even  the 
dogs  were  frosted  white.  We  used  to  stand  on  deck  and 
gaze  on  the  sun  as  it  sank,  surrounded  by  the  evening  clouds, 
behind  the  jagged  edges  of  the  hummocks.  Raised  by  re- 
fraction, he  appeared  for  the  last  time  on  the  22nd  of  October 
with  half  his  disc  above  the  horizon,  and  the  whole  southern 
sky  was  for  a  time  like  a  sea  of  fire  over  the  cold,  stiff  forms 
and  lines  of  ice.  At  length  the  disc  disappeared,  and  masses 
of  dark  clouds  moved  up  and  obscured  the  light  still  lingering 
in  the  sky.  The  long  reign  of  night  began,  and  the  wastes 
around  us  relapsed  into  the  stern  sway  of  winter.  A  pale 
twilight  still  lingered  for  some  time,  but  its  faint  arc  became 
smaller  and  feebler.  No  shadows  accompanied  the  forms  of 
those  who  strayed  over  the  ice.  The  wind  moaned  in  the 
frozen  desert.  The  darkness  and  the  cold  continually  increased, 
till  the  dome  of  night  vaulted  the  lonely  spot  which  had 
become  our  home. 

2.  But  the  hope  and  expectation  of  successes  to  be  achieved, 
and  the  feeling  that  our  safety  was  not  immediately  threatened, 
rendered  this  second  winter  a  happy  contrast  to  the  preceding 
one.  We  had  now  leisure  and  calmness  for  intellectual  occupa- 
U 


1 86  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.XIII. 

tions,  which  were,  indeed,  the  only  means  of  relieving  the 
monotony  of  the  long  period  of  darkness.  We  lived  like 
hermits  in  our  little  cabins  in  the  after-part  of  the  ship,  and 
learned  that  mental  activity  without  any  other  joy  suffices  to 
make  men  happy  and  contented.  The  oppressive  feeling  of 
having  to  return  ingloriously  home,  which  had  always  been 
disagreeably  present  to  our  minds  during  the  first  winter,  was 
no  longer  felt.  We  had  now  a  hope,  the  charms  of  which 
-grew  day  by  day,  that  in  the  spring  we  should  be  able  to  leave 
the  ship  and  start  on  expeditions  to  explore  the  land  we  had 
discovered.  Happy  in  this  expectation,  we  could  enjoy  the 
indescribable  pleasures  of  good  books,  all  the  more  that  we 
were  far  from  the  busy  haunts  of  men,  and  that  the  presence 
of  danger  clears  and  sharpens  the  understanding.  Nowhere 
can  a  book  be  so  valued  as  in  such  an  isolated  position  as  ours 
was.  Great,  therefore,  was  the  advantage  we  possessed  in  a 
good  library,  consisting  of  books  of  science,  and  of  the  classics 
of  literature.  In  fact,  freed  from  the  constantly  recurring 
perils,  which  had  been  our  portion "  in  the  first  long  Arctic 
night,  this  second  winter  was,  to  all  who  actively  employed 
their  minds,  comparatively  a  state  of  happiness,  undisturbed 
by  cares.  With  regard  to  the  crew,  they  were  kept  in  good 
humour  by  the  increase  of  their  comforts.  As  we  had  not  the 
prospect  of  a  third  winter  in  the  ice — which  would  have 
rendered  a  greater  economy  of  our  provisions  imperative — we 
were  enabled  to  provide  them  with  a  more  generous  diet. 

3.  In  the  last  three  weeks  of  November  we  had  complete 
darkness,  the  sky  clouded  over  and  the  weather  bad.  So 
dark  was  it,  that  our  environment,  though  it  was  overspread 
with  countless  hummocks  and  ice-cliffs,  looked  like  one  black 
unbroken  level.  On  the  3ist  of  October  most  of  the  stars 
were  visible  about  3  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  ;  by  4  o'clock 
actual  night  prevailed.  On  the  i6th  of  November  large  print 
was  barely  legible  even  at  noon.  On  the  i8th  of  the  month 
we  were  able  to  read  the  larger  letters  on  the  title-page  of 
Vogt's  Geology  at  the  distance  of  a  foot.  At  noon,  on  the 
1 3th  of  December,  not  a  letter  of  this  same  title-page  was 
legible,  even  in  clear  weather.  On  the  5th  of  November  there 
was  a  total  eclipse  of  the  moon,  which  then  sank  below  the 
horizon  and  did  not  return  till  the  2Qth  of  that  month.  Its 


188  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  xin. 


beams  then  fell  on  a  large  ice-hole,  which  had  formed  itself 
twenty  miles  to  the  south  of  the  ship,  which  made  us  appre- 
hensive lest  our  floe  should  be  driven  by  the  north  winds  in 
a  southerly  direction.  On  the  4th  of  December  the  moon 
reached  its  highest  declination,  but,  as  it  waned,  it  was  con- 
stantly obscured  by  bad  weather.  I  had  reckoned  on  the 
return  of  moonlight  to  make  an  excursion  of  some  days  to 
the  mainland.  But  the  fickleness  of  the  weather  at  the 
beginning  of  December  compelled  me  to  confine  my  wander- 
ings to  Wilczek  Island,  which  I  frequently  visited,  although 
with  a  thermometer  at  —  35°  F.  I  was  exposed  to  frost-bites 
in  the  face  and  hands,  whenever  I  attempted  to  draw  by  the 
light  of  a  lamp,  and  with  only  the  protection  of  light  woollen 
gloves.1 

4.  We  observed  during  this  winter,  that,  on  the  clearest 
nights,  show  of  the  finest  texture  continued  to  fall,  so  that  we 
saw  the  heavenly  bodies,  as  it  were,  through  a  veil  of  fine 
gauze.  In  the  moonlight  this  fine  snow  sparkled  faintly,  and 
its  presence  could  only  be  discovered  by  a  prickling  on  the 
skin.  The  constancy  of  these  downfalls  added  of  course  to 
the  depth  of  the  snow  under  which  the  Tegetthoff  was  almost 
buried  ;  indeed  at  the  beginning  of  the  spring  she  no  longer 
stood  out  from  the  covering  of  snow,  although  her  fore-part 
was  eleven-and-three-quarter  feet,  and  her  after-part  four-and- 
a-half  feet,  above  the  ice  on  which  she  rested.  The  air  was 
also  often  filled  with  an  indescribable  quantity  of  driving 
snow ;  and  when  the  wind  dropped  and  permitted  it  to  fall, 
we  were  struck  with  the  profound  stillness  of  our  environment. 
The  cold  constantly  increased  and  penetrated  all  the  parts 
of  the  interior  of  the  ship  which  were  not  artificially  heated,2 
and  almost  all  the  fluids,  which  were  not  specially  protected, 
were  frozen.  The  various  kinds  of  spirits  on  board  were 
exposed  on  the  23rd  of  November  to  the  cold  at  -  26°  F. ;  at 
the  end  of  an  hour-and-a-half  they  still  remained  fluid. 
When  the  temperature  fell  to  —  31°  F.,  hollands,  common  gin 

1  I  take  this  opportunity  of  stating  that  the  originals  of  nearly  all  the  illustrations 
of  this  book  were  drawn  on  the  spot  from  nature,  and  that  they  have  been  repro- 
duced as  they  were  drawn. 

2  On  the  24th  of  November  the  thermometer  marked  — 14°  F.  in  the  ship's  hole 
The  screw  propeller  had  been  fast  frozen  a  month  before. 


190  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 


and  maraschino  were  congealed  in  two-hours-and-a-half,  but 
rum  and  brandy  remained  unchanged.  On  another  occasion 
a  mixture  of  two  parts  of  pure  alcohol  to  one  part  of  water 
froze  at -47°  R,  cognac  at  -  53°  F.  This  low  temperature 
had  so  increased  the  thickness  of  the  ice,  that  the  basin  of 
open  water,  which  had  been  sawed  through  in  the  previous 
summer,  was  covered  on  the  3rd  of  January  with  ice  three- 
and-a-half,  and  on  the  2Oth  with  ice  six-and-a-half  feet  thick. 

5.  On   the  2 ist  of   December,  the  middle  of   the   second 
long  Polar  night — which  lasted  in  all  125  days — was  reached  ; 
and  although  we  knew  where  the  south  lay,  every  trace  of 
twilight  had  disappeared,  and  for  six  weeks  we  were  enveloped 
in  unbroken  darkness.     The  figure  of  a  man  could  not  be  dis- 
cerned at  a  very  short  distance.     In  order  to  be  able  to  sketch 
the  ship,  I  had  to  illuminate  it  by  torches.     Those  who  made 
expeditions  afoot  were  struck,  as  it  were,  with  blindness.     If 
they  approached  what  seemed  to  be  a  lofty  chain  of  moun- 
tains, over  the  ridge  of  which  the  planet  Jupiter  hung  like  a 
glowing  point,  they  came  at  once  on  a  dark  wall  of  ice ;  and 
when    they    ascended   the  apparently  far    distant  ridge,  the 
planet    stood    almost    in   the    zenith.     There  was  something 
approaching  to  twilight  only  when  the  crescent  moon  shone 
in  her  first  quarter.     On  the  7th  of  December  the  sun  was 
12°,  and  on  the  2ist  14^°,  below  the  horizon.     We  should  not 
have  seen  the  sun,  could  we  have  ascended  the  pinnacle  of  the 
Alps,  which  Pliny  imagined  to  be  120,000  feet  high,  or  even 
from  that  summit  of  the  Caucasus  which  Aristotle  reckoned 
at  230,000  feet.  , 

6.  Distrusting  the  quiescent  state  of  the  ice,  we  had  again 
stretched  a  tent  over  one-half  of  the  ship's  deck,  while  the 
other  portion  was  covered  with  snow  trodden  down  as  hard  as 
a  skating-rink.     The  space  for  free  movement  was  narrowed 
still  further  by  the  long-boat  placed  between  the  two  masts 
by  the  stores  of  provisions  kept  in  readiness  for  the  possible 
disaster  which  might  compel  us  to  leave  the  ship,  by, the  stand 
of  rifles,  by  dog-kennels,   and  other  inevitable  impediments. 
In  bad  weather  the  dogs  sheltered  themselves  under  the  tent, 
and  sometimes  showed  ill-temper  if  their  feet  were  trod  on. 
There  were  places  on  deck  where  only  their  particular  friends 
were  safe  from   being  bitten  ;  Sumbu    especially  had  a  bad 


xiii.]  OUR  SECOND  WINTER  IN  THE  ICE.  191 

habit  of  lying  behind  a  cask  and  springing  out  on  every  one 
that  passed  by.  Here  under  its  friendly  shelter  the  men 
waited  the  summons  to  their  meals.  Hither  came  Carlsen  to 
enjoy  the  opportunity  of  talking  Norwegian  with  some  one  or 
other.  The  deck  light  shone  feebly  on  all  this,  shedding  its 
rays  on  the  fine  snow  which  fell  through  the  tent-roof.  In  the 
second  half  of  the  winter,  when  the  deck  was  less  frequented, 
the  lantern  became,  like  the  crew — more  sleepy  ;  and  its  dull 
light  fell  on  hard-frozen  sailcloth,  boards  covered  with  snow, 
and  on  empty  tin  cases.  Here,  too,  walked,  of  course,  the 
deck-watch,  enveloped  in  clothes  from  head  to  foot,  with  only 
their  eyes  uncovered,  looking  more  like  moving  figures  than 
men.  The  deck-watch  had  also  to  keep  open  the  water-hole 
in  the  ice,  to  look  out  for  bears,  and  to  assist  in  reading  off 
the  thermometers  exposed  on  the  ice.  They  were  on  duty  for 
two  hours,  and  the  moment  they  were  relieved,  they  shot 
down  into  their  quarters,  as  quickly  as  a  harpooned  whale 
dives  under  the  waves.  He,  too,  whose  duty  it  was  to  fetch 
the  snow  to  be  converted  into  water  was  often  to  be  seen  on 
deck.  Although  the  store  of  snow  in  which  we  lived  was 
inexhaustible,  yet,  in  order  to  be  exempt  from  this  duty  in 
bad  weather,  it  was  the  practice  of  those  who  were  told  off 
for  this  service  to  lay  up  a  supply  of  blocks  of  frozen  snow 
under  the  tent.  Some  of  the  crew  showed  the  scrupulosity  of 
chemists  in  their  work.  Before  they  proceeded  to  build  up 
their  pile,  they  brought  specimens  to  the  cook,  in  order  to 
learn  his  opinion  as  to  the  residuum  of  salt  in  the  ice. 

/•  With  December  a  new  era  began  for  the  dogs.  A  large 
snow  house  was  built  for  them  outside  the  ship,  in  which  were 
placed  their  kennels,  well  filled  with  straw.  The  name  of 
each  dog  was  written  on  his  house.  And  here  let  me  remark, 
that  the  winter  quarters  of  the  dogs  should  always  be  on  the 
ice.  To  keep  them  under  the  deck-tent  is  unhealthy  and  in- 
convenient, and  would  be  an  impossibility  if  their  numbers 
were  great.  Every  morning  Haller  opened  the  door  of  the 
snow  house,  and  out  rushed  the  dogs,  with  their  tails  in  the 
air,  to  begin  forthwith  a  general  fight.  No  shouts,  no  blows, 
not  even  the  discharge  of  a  rifle  could  separate  the  combatants. 
Pouring  water  over  them  at  a  temperature  of  —  35°  F.,  though 
a  somewhat  barbarous  way  of  producing  peace,  was  successful 


192  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

only  with  the  younger  dogs.  When  the  fight  was  over,  the 
next  object  was  to  find  out  their  special  patron,  and  the  instant 
they  recognised  him  they  rushed  upon  him,  tugged  at  his 
clothes,  and  thrust  their  noses  inquiringly  into  his  pockets. 
Each  then  made  his  morning  round,  visiting  the  places  where 
he  had  hid  in  the  snow  a  piece  of  bread  or  covered  up  a  bit 
of  seal.  When  they  had  satisfied  their  appetite,  it  was  curious 
to  observe  how  they  would  make  it  smooth  over  the  hole  in 
which  they  deposited  their  treasure,  all  the  time  cunningly 
turning  their  eyes  right  and  left  to  see  whether  they  were 
observed. 

8.  Their  violence  and  eagerness  having  somewhat  abated, 
we  may  observe  the  members  of  our  pack  one  by  one.  The 
red  giant  there,  who  offers  his  paw  as  huge  as  a  bear's,  is 
named  after  a  god  of  the  heathen  days  of  Lapland,  "  Jubinal ;" 
and  not  a  few  legends  surrounded  the  accounts  of  his  early 
life.  A  Siberian  Israelite,  so  it  was  said,  brought  him  from 
the  north  of  Asia  over  the  Ural.  He  was  the  victor  in  all 
fights,  the  leader  of  the  sledge  team,  and  could  drag  four  men 
on  a  hard  level  path  without  any  effort.  The  day  before  we 
sailed  from  Bremerhaven  he  tore  a  sheep  to  pieces.  Every 
summer  when  he  changed  his  coat,  the  sailors  clad  him  in  a 
canvas  dress.  Bop  was  his  inferior  in  strength,  but  his  supe- 
rior in  wisdom ;  Matoschkin  surpassed  him  in  gravity.  The 
latter  used  to  sit  foi  hours  in  a  moody  manner  on  a  pile  of 
chests  looking  at  the  ice  world.  Bop  and  Matoschkin  were 
Newfoundlands  ;  the  first  died  of  cold  in  our  first  winter,  the 
latter,  as  our  readers  may  remember,  was  carried  off  by  a 
bear  and  torn  to  pieces.  We  had  also  two  Newfoundland 
bitches,  who  were  called  respectively  "  Novaya "  and 
"  Zemlya  ;  "  the  former  died  in  the  first  year,  the  latter,  though 
she  was  of  little  use  in  sledging  from  her  laziness,  may  claim 
indisputably  the  merit  of  being  the  mother  of  her  hopeful 
son,  "  Torossy,"  who  grew  to  a  considerable  size,  and  was  the 
pride  of  the  whole  crew.  He  knew  no  other  world  than  the 
frozen  ocean,  and  no  other  destiny  than  to  draw  a  sledge  ;  and 
to  this  work  he  had  devoted  himself  zealously  since  the  com- 
mencement of  winter.  In  the  happy  courage  of  ignorance 
he  wagged  his  tail  all  day  on  deck ;  wagged  his  tail  as  he 
followed  us  on  the  ice ;  wagged  it,  even  when  Sumbu  stole 


Xlll.]  OUR  SECOND  WINTER  IN  THE  ICE.  193 

his  dinner  ;  wagged  it,  even  before  the  jaws  of  a  bear.  Gillis, 
the  fifth  Newfoundland,  was  incessantly  quarrelling,  and  was 
the  irreconcilable  enemy  of  Jubinal ;  he  was  a  favourite  with 
no  one,  chiefly  because  he  had  killed  the  two  cats  which  we 
brought  from  Tromsoe  as  pets  for  the  dogs.  His  body  was 
covered  with  scars,  and  half  his  time  was  spent  under  the 
medical  treatment  of  the  Tyrolese.  He  was  not  wanting  in 
docility,  but  he  .was  essentially  an  eye-pleaser  ;  all  his  efforts 
in  the  sledge  were  mere  sham.  Pekel,  the  Lapp,  was  the 
smallest  of  all  the  dogs.  In  his  early  days  he  had  tended  the 
reindeer  at  the  North  Cape  and  on  the  plains  of  Tana  Elf,  and 


PEKEL,    SUMBU,    AND    JUBINAL. 


his  ways  did  not  fit  him  for  life  amid  the  ice,  but  for  the  brown 
herd  which  roamed  at  the  foot  of  Kilpis.  Hence  he  was 
quarrelsome,  and  showed  special  enmity  to  Sumbu,  the  mere 
sight  of  whom  was  enough  to  stir  up  the  most  hostile  feelings. 
He  was  therefore  banished  with  his  house  to  a  high  ice-cliff, 
but  the  thaw  destroying  its  supports,  house  and  dog  fell  plump 
into  an  ice-lake.  Among  all  the  dogs  there  was  no  such  despe- 
rate hypocrite  as  Sumbu,  the  most  demonstrative  in  his  friend- 
ship, but  withal  the  most  greedy  and  dissatisfied.  He  was  the 
first  to  slink  away  with  tail  between  his  legs  and  find  out  the 
most  secluded  nook,  when  he  saw  the  other  dogs  being  har- 
nessed in  the  sledges  ;  and,  when  pulled  out  and  put  in  a 
team,  at  once  laid  himself  down  on  the  sledge,  not  to  draw, 
but  to  be  drawn.  When  at  last  he  was  set  in  motion,  he  was 
no  longer  the  same  dog.  He  was  then  full  of  action,  unsur- 
passed in  speed  and  agility,  and  his  sportiveness  was  as  great 
as  his  cunning.  From  the  carpenter  he  would  carry  off  a  hoop, 


I94  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

or  a  bag  of  nails  from  the  stoker,  or  he  lay  flat  on  his  belly  and 
thrust  out  his  long  nose  in  the  snow.  His  agility  stood  him 
in  good  stead,  for  it  enabled  him  to  catch  all  the  mice  that 
ventured  on  deck.  Neither  the  stores  of  provisions  for  the 
dogs  nor  the  depot  of  food  for  the  crew  were  safe  from  his 
depredations.  He  hated  bears  so  fiercely,  that  he  began  to 
howl  like  a  wolf  when  we  turned  out  to  hunt  them.  Boldly 
he  followed  up  their  trail,  even  when  at  a  distance  from  the 
hunters  and  close  to  the  heels  of  the  bear.  The  dogs  were 
fed  once  a  day  with  bear's  flesh  or  blubber,  or  dried  horse- 
flesh, as  long  as  it  lasted.1  They  well  knew  the  hour  of  feed- 
ing, and  gathered  together  before  it  arrived.  At  night  they 
were  shut  up  in  their  house,  and  when  the  snow  drifted  they 
all  lay  huddled  in  a  heap  before  the  door.  The  dog-house 
was  about  eight  feet  high,  but  after  a  few  weeks  we  could 
scarcely  discern  it  from  the  accumulation  of  snow-drifts.  For 
some  time  we  kept  up  communication  with  it  by  means  of 
a  shaft  dug  in  the  snow  ;  but  one  day  in  February  a  fissure  in 
the  ice  was  formed  right  across  where  the  house  stood,  which 
compelled  us  to  remove  it. 

9.  The  end  of  December  came,  and  with  it  the  season  of 
those  festivals  which  animate  the  Christian  world — Christmas- 
tide  and  the  New  Year.  In  order  to  celebrate  them  in 
common,  we  built  a  snow  house,  decorated  its  interior  with 
flags,  and  placed  in  it  a  Christmas  tree,  which, ^however,  more 
resembled  a  wooden  hedgehog  or  a  cheval  de  frise.  About 
six  o'clock  in  the  evening  all  our  preparations  were  made,  and 
the  ship's  bell,  sounding  mournfully  in  the  dark  and  misty 
atmosphere,  summoned  us  to  our  snow  house  on  the  ice.  Here 
lots  were  drawn,  and  cigars,  watches,  knives,  pipes  or  rum  fell 
to  the  fortunate  drawers.  For  all  these  presents  we  had  to 
thank  friends  in  Vienna,  or  Pola,  or  Hamburg.  Then  came 
the  Christmas  dinner,  but  no  one's  heart  was  in  the  matter. 
Our  bodies,  indeed,  were  present,  but  our  thoughts  were  far 
away  with  those  we  loved  at  home.  New  Year's  Eve  passed 
off  somewhat  more  cheerfully.  -Bettergrounded  seemed  our 
expectations  that  1874  would  at  last  bring  us  our  long-desired 
activity  and  a  not  inglorious  return  to  Europe.  Scarcely  had 
the  new  year  begun  than  the  crew  knocked  at  our  cabin 

1   We  had  brought  1,400  Ibs.  of  it  from  Bremerhaven. 


xiii.]  OUR  SECOND  WINTER  IN  THE  ICE.  195 

doors  with  their  congratulations,  and  such  salutations  continued 
to  be  the  order  of  the  day.  On  the  whole  this  second  winter 
both  before  and  after  the  new  year  (1874),  passed  away  with- 
out the  fearful  events  of  the  preceding.  Although  floes  lay 
close  to  us  on  every  side,  and  we  had  no  harbour  in  which  to 
pass  the  winter  with  comfort — like  a  bear  in  its  winter  sleep — 
the  quiescent  state  of  the  ice  allowed  us  to  hope  that  our  floe 
would  remain  in  the  position  it  had  hitherto  maintained.  This 
hope,  indeed,  lay  at  the  mercy  of  the  winds  ;  for  if  north 
winds  should  set  in,  it  was  extremely  probable  that  the  ice 
would  break  up  and  drift  asunder. 

10.  The  life  we  now  led  below  in  the  ship  had  ceased  to  be 
in  any  way  disagreeable,  and  cheerful  and  entertaining  reading 
seemed  to  be  healthier  than  bodily  exercise.  We  did  not 
suffer  from  any  want  of  the  necessaries  of  life ;  the  tempera- 
ture of  our  living-rooms  generally  admitted  of  our  sitting  for 
hours  even  without  our  overcoats.  The  long  night  of  this 
Polar  winter  was  gloomy  and  oppressive  only  to  those  who  had 
time  and  leisure  to  weigh  the  burden  of  the  hours.  There 
were,  of  course,  even  in  this  second  winter,  some  of  those  dis- 
comforts and  dangers  of  which  the  reader  has  heard  enough, 
and  which  lead  him  when  he  reads  of  life  in  the  frozen 
regions  to  think  of  ice-floes  rather  than  of  a  room  in  which 
comfort  is  quite  possible.  We  had,  indeed,  the  usual  incon- 
veniences. As  early  as  the  middle  of  October  the  sky- 
light was  so  covered  with  frost  that  we  could  scarcely  read 
even  at  noon.  On  the  2Oth  of  that  month  we  were  obliged 
to  keep  the  lamps  constantly  burning,  and  to  close  in  the  sky- 
light, which  brought  night  into  the  mess-room  before  the  night 
of  Nature  had  arrived.  By  the  middle  of  November  the 
condensation  of  moisture  was  perceptible,  and  our  bed-clothes 
-were  frequently  frozen  to  the  wall,  and  had  to  be  torn  from  it 
before  we  could  go  to  rest.  Yet  what  signified  all  this  ?  We 
all  slept  soundly  notwithstanding,  and  during  the  day  had  to 
complain  rather  of  warmth  than  of  cold.  The  condition  of 
the  crew,  however,  was  not  so  happy.  We  could  not  follow 
the  example  set  by  Hayes  and  others  of  removing  the  con- 
tents of  the  hold  to  the  land,  and  so  transforming  it  into 
quarters  for  the  men.  On  board  the  Tegetthoff  we  suffered 
some  of  the  evils  of  over-population,  and  the  moisture  was  so 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


much  increased  from  it,  that  some  of  the  berths  were  com- 
pletely saturated.  The  •  employment  of  hammocks  would 
perhaps  avert  this  evil. 

ii.  The  number  of  those  afflicted  with  scurvy  decreased 
with  the  approach  of  spring.  Their  gums  recovered  their 
fresh  and  natural  appearance,  and  the  general  weakness,  the 
pains  in  the  joints,  the  leaden  weight  of  the  feet,  the  depres- 
sion of  spirits — symptoms  of  this  terrible  malady — abated, 
and  the  scorbutic  marks  disappeared  from  their  bodies. 


IN    THE   MESS-ROOM. 


Pachtusow,  when  he  wintered  in  Novaya  Zemlya,  so  abun- 
dant in  supplies  of  drift-wood,  caused  his  people  to  use  the 
bath  once  a  week  in  a  log  house  constructed  on  the  land,  as  a 
preservative  against  scurvy,  and  had  their  inner  clothing 
washed  twice  a  week,  but  even  these  steps  were  insufficient  to 
avert  the  malady.  In  our  case  baths  so  added  to  the  mois- 
ture that  we  were  obliged  to  put  a  stop  to  them,  and  our  un- 
der-garments  could  be  changed  only  as  our  stock  of  them 


xiii.]  OUR  SECOND  WINTER  IN  THE  ICE.  197 

permitted.  Hence  we  could  hope  to  prevent  the  spread  of 
scurvy  only  by  the  improvement  of  our  diet.  Several  hundred- 
weight of  potatoes  and  a  large  supply  of  preserved  meat  had 
been  kept  in  store  for  the  second  winter.  These  now  came 
into  use,  and  were  the  more  welcome  as  our  supply  of  lemon- 
juice — the  most  important  preservative  against  scurvy — was 
diminishing.  By  the  advice  of  our  physician,  Dr.  Kepes,  we 
departed  from  the  maxim,  so  generally  adhered  to  in  Arctic 
expeditions,  of  avoiding  spirituous  liquors.  From  the  begin- 
ning of  October  our  men  daily  received  rations  of  brandy. 
When  I  compare  the  sanitary  condition  of  the  crew  of  the 
Tegetthoff  with  the  better  state  of  that  of  the  Germania,  I 
attribute  this  to  the  lesser  power  of  resistance  to  disease  in 
some  of  our  people  on  board  the  Tegetthoff,  and  to  the  moral 
depression  so  easily  explained  by  our  disasters  in  this  ship. 

12.  The  Arctic  voyager  is  exposed  to  no  disease  so  much 
as  to  scurvy.  Its  appearance  among  a  crew  exercises  a  most 
untoward  influence.  Its  causes  are  still  but  little  known  ;  the 
means,  however,  of  combating  it  are  numerous.  It  is  no 
longer  the  scourge  it  was  in  the  days  of  Barentz,  when  he  and 
all  his  men  were  attacked  with  it  on  the  short  summer  ex- 
cursion of  1595,  or  when  in  Munk's  expedition  of  1619  all 
died  but  two.  In  Behring's  expedition  of  1741,  out  of  seventy- 
six  men,  forty-two  were  attacked  and  thirty  died.  In  Tschiri- 
koffs  summer  expedition  during  that  same  year  (1741),  out  of 
seventy  men,  twenty  died.  Rossmyslow,  who  passed  the 
winter  of  1768-69  in  "Matoschkin-Schar,"  lost  seven  out  of 
thirteen  men.  When  the  disease  gains  the  mastery,  the  utter 
incapacity  of  the  expedition  for  further  exploration  follows  as 
a  necessary  consequence.  Lassinius,  who  was  sent  out  to 
explore  Novaya  Zemlya  in  1819,  had  to  return  in  the  height 
of  summer,  all  his  men  having  fallen  down  with  the  scurvy. 
This  disease  has  been  a  frightful  enemy  to  expeditions  which 
have  wintered  in  that  region,  and  carried  off  numerous  victims. 
All  these,  it  is  true,  were  miserably  equipped,  and  depended  on 
the  medicinal  virtues  of  the  "  Loffel-kraut "  of  that  country 
for  remedies  against  the  disease.  In  1832-33  Pachtusow, 
wintering  in  the  south  of  the  island,  out  of  ten  men  lost  three ; 
in  1834-35,  two  more  died  of  the  same  disease.  In  the  expe- 
dition of  Ziwolka  and  Mojsejew,  1838-39,  the  scurvy  gained 


198  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.          [CHAP.  xin. 


such  mastery  that  at  the  end  of  February  half  of  the  crew  were 
attacked,  and  Ziwolka  himself  with  eight  men  died.  Parry 
regarded  damp,  especially  damp  bedding,  as  the  principal  cause 
of  the  malady.  During  his  wintering  at  Melville  Island  he 
found  sorrel  an  effective  remedy  or  palliative.  He  attri- 
buted the  greatest  anti-scorbutic  effect  to  beer  ;  and  according 
to  him  and  to  most  of  the  English  expeditions,  beer  and  wine 
take  the  place  of  brandy.  The  disease  generally  has  a  fatal 
issue  when  there  has  been  excessive  loss  of  blood,  or  when 
dropsy  supervenes.  Most  of  Ross's  second  expedition  suffered 
more  or  less  from  it,  and  the  experience  of  that  expedition 
showed  that  vegetable  nourishment  alone  was  not  competent 
to  make  head  against  it.  Ross  regarded  the  addition  of  fish 
or  seals  to  the  ordinary  diet  as  an  effective  preservative,  and 
did  not  disdain  the  use  of  blubber  for  the  same  purpose. 
Lemon-juice,  uncooked  potatoes,  fruit  with  much  acidity, 
fresh  vegetables  and  fresh  meat,  wine  and  yeast,  exercise  in 
the  open  air,  and  cheerfulness,  have  always  proved  sufficient  to 
prevent  its  appearance,  or  at  any  rate  to  render  it  improbable. 
But  however  valuable  these  may  be  as  preventives,  they 
almost  cease  to  have  any  effect  when  the  disease  has  once 
broken  out.  The  lime-juice  must  be  fresh,  and,  like  vinegar 
be  taken  in  as  concentrated  a  form  as  possible.  It  is  decom- 
posed and  useless  by  being  kept  too  long,  and  also  by  the 
action  of  frost.  This  was  the  case  with  the  lemon-juice  which 
Sir  John  Ross  found  among  the  stores  of  the  Fury.  An  anti- 
scorbutic effect  has  been  attributed  also — and  with  justice — to 
the  chewing  of  tobacco.  It  appears  that  liability  to  scurvy  is 
very  different  among  different  races,  and  that  neither  vege- 
table nor  animal  food  is  an  absolute  preservative.  The 
Eskimos,  and  even  the  Lapps,  who  seldom  or  never  use  vege- 
tables, are  almost  exempt  from  it,  and  McClure's  men  fell 
down  with  it  in  their  second  winter,  although  they  had  fresh 
meat  three  times  a  week.  Steller  relates  that  in  Kamschatka 
scurvy  attacks  strangers  only,  but  not  the  natives,  who  live 
largely  on  vegetables  ;  he  states  also,  that  the  scurvy  when  it 
does  appear  among  strangers  and  visitors  there,  is  cured  by  a 
diet  of  the  fresh  fish  of  spring. 


CHAPTER    XIV 

SUNRISE  OF    18/4. 

I.  AN  unbroken  sleep  for  the  whole  winter  would,  undoubt- 
edly, be  a  blessing  to  the  Arctic  navigator,  and  the  most 
energetic  among  us  resigned  himself  to  slumber  for  a  few 
hours  in  the  afternoon — the  profane  time  of  the  day  for  all 
zones  of  the  earth — especially  after  the  coming  in  of  the  New 
Year,  when  the  long  unbroken  night  is  intensely  felt.  The 
darkness  diminished  very  gradually,  and  as  the  weather  was 
frequently  cloudy  and  dull,  it  was  little  lessened  by  the  full 
moon,  which  we  had  at  the  beginning  of  January  and  February. 
December  26,  we  were  able  to  read  only  the  title  of  New 
Free  Press,  at  the  distance  of  a  few  inches,  but  not  a  word 
of  Vogt's  Geology.  January  n,  the  word  Geology  on  the 
title  of  that  book  was  discernible  in  clear  weather,  but 
only  when  the  book  was  held  up  to  the  light  of  the  midday 
twilight.  On  the  following  day  it  was  as  dark  at  nine 
o'clock  in  the  morning  as  at  noon  on  December  1st.  The 
moon  returned  again  on  the  24th  of  January,  and  after  it 
was  four  days  old  we  could  distinguish  the  common  print 
of  the  "  Press "  by  its  light,  and  for  the  first  time  read  off 
the  degrees  of  the  thermometer  without  artificial  means. 
During  the  whole  of  the  month  we  had  alternations  of  high 
temperatures  and  snow-drifting,  and  at  the  end  of  it  the  wind 
dropped  and  the  cold  became  exceedingly  great,  causing  the 
ice  to  break  up  to  the  south  of  our  position.  It  would  be 
difficult  to  give  in  an  illustration  any  notion  of  the  wonder- 
ful forms  produced  by  the  twilight,  and  its  glowing  colour- 
effects,  and  quite  impossible  to  describe  the  blaze  of  the 


200  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

meridian  heavens,  while  deep  shadows  still  lay  over  the  ice- 
plains  and  a  dark  ridge  fringed  and  closed  the  horizon. 

2.  At    noon   on  the   23rd    of  February   the   rolling   mists 
glowed  with  a  red  light,  announcing  the  reappearance  of  the 
sun.     The  next  day  the  sun  himself,  raised  and  distorted  into 
an  oval  shape,  appeared  above  the  horizon   about    10   A.M. 
Again  there  was  spread  over  the  snow  that  magical  rosy  hue, 
those  bright  azure  shadows,  which  impart  a  poetical  character 
even  to  the  landscape  of  the  frozen  north.     The  return  of  the 
sun  was  this  year  the  deliverance  from  our  long  night  of  125 
days.1     Anxiously  had  we  waited  his  return,  and  joyously  we 
greeted  it,  but  not  with  the  frenzied  feelings  of  the  previous 
year.      Then   the   reappearance   of  the  sun  was  tantamount 
almost  to  a  deliverance  from  hell  itself ;  but  now  the  sun  was 
nothing  to  us  but  as  a  means  to  an  end  :  would  it  enable  us  to 
begin  our  sledge-journeys  to  explore  the  Kaiser  Franz-Josef 
Land  ?     The  mere  thought  of  the  possibility  of  making  new 
discoveries  threw  us  into  a  feverish  impatience,  and  our  fears 
became  intense  lest  the  ship  with  its  floe  should  drift  away 
and  frustrate  the  execution  of  our  plans  just  as  they  seemed 
feasible. 

3.  On  that  same  day  Lieutenant  Weyprecht  and  I  resolved 
to  abandon  the  ship  after  the  termination  of  our  projected 
sledge-journeys  of   discovery,   and  to  attempt   to   return  to 
Europe  by  means  of  the  boats  and  sledges.     No  arguments 
were  needed  to  convince  every  one  of  the  ship's   company  of 
the  absolute  necessity  of  this  resolution.     Our  ship  lay  on  its 
icy  elevation,  beyond  the  power  of  man  to  liberate  her,  and 
the   provisions   would    not   be    sufficient   to    sustain    us    for 
another  year.     But  fear  lest  the  state  of  our  health  should 
greatly  deteriorate  in  a  third  winter  spoke  more  forcibly  than 
anything  else  in  favour  of  our  decision.     When  we  looked  at 
our  medical  stores,  once  so  ample,  now  so  reduced,  at  the  few 
bottles  of  lemon-juice  we  could  count  on,  all  saw  the  impos- 
sibility  of  our   remaining   longer   in    these  latitudes.       The 
melancholy  issue  of  Franklin's  expedition  forced  itself  on  our 

1  Parry's  winter  night  of  1819-20  lasted  eighty-four  days  ;  Ross's,  in  the  Gulf 
of  Boothia,  fifty  days  ;  Kane's,  in  Rennssalaer  harbour,  1 1 3  days,  and  Hayes' 
123.  In  the  latter  case,  however,  the  mountains  on  his  southern  horizon  were  the 
cause  why  the  sun  was  not  earlier  visible. 


XIV.]  SUNRISE  OF  1874.  201 

mind  as  an  instructive  example  and  warning.  In  all  likelihood 
that  ill-fated  expedition  had  delayed  its  return  a  year  longer 
than  it  should  have  done,  and  began  it  in  so  weakened  a  con- 
dition, that  it  was  next  to  an  impossibility  that  they  should 
have  succeeded  in  their  purpose.  We  began  to  be  pinched 
also  in  many  of  cur  stores,  in  spite  of  the  greatest  economy 
in  their  use.  To  add  to  our  perils,  the  doctor  drew  a  sad 
picture  of  the  sanitary  condition  of  our  crew.  Of  nineteen 
men,  several  had  fallen  sick  :  Krisch  still  suffered  from  scurvy 
and  consumption  ;  Marola  from  the  first  scorbutic  symptoms; 
Fallesich  from  its  consequences ;  Vecerina  from  the  utter  ina- 
bility to  move  his  lower  extremities  produced  by  the  same 
malady ;  Palmich  from  a  constant  tendency  to  it  and  the  con- 
traction of  his  lower  extremities  ;  Pospischill  from  lung  dis- 
ease ;  and  Haller  from  a  rheumatic  affection  of  his  ex- 
tremities which  almost  incapacitated  him  for  any  exertion. 

15 


CHAPTER    XV. 

THE  AURORA. 

I.  THE  Northern  lights  had  shone  for  these  two  winters  with 
incomparable  splendour,  not,  indeed,  with  the  quiet  diverging 
beams,  sometimes  observed  in  our  northern  latitudes,  and 
different  also  from  the  phenomena  which  have  been  seen  and 
noted  in  recent  years,  even  in  Central  Europe ;  they  resembled 
rather  those  we  saw  in  East  Greenland,  save  that  the  brilli- 
ancy and  intensity  of  their  colours  were  far  greater. 

2.  It  is  very  difficult  to  characterize  the  forms  of  this  phe- 
nomenon, not  only  because  they  are  manifold,  but  because 
they  are  constantly  changing.     Sometimes  the  Aurora  appears 
like  flaming  arches  with  glowing  balls  of  light  ;  sometimes  in 
irregular  meridians    painted  on  the   heavens,  sometimes  in 
brilliant  bands  and   patches  of  light  on  the  sky.     Each  of 
these  forms  was  frequently  developed  from  a  different  one, 
but  towards  morning  the  last-named  appearance  was  the  most 
general. 

3.  The  movement  of  the  waves  of  light  gave  the  impres- 
sion that  they  were  the  sport  of  winds,  and  their  sudden  and 
rapid  rise  resembled  the  uprising  of  whirling  vapours,  such  as 
the    Geysers  might  send  forth,  which  generally  assumed  the 
form  of  enormous  flames,  except  that  they  were  transparent 
and  mist-like.     In  many  cases  the  Aurora  much  resembled  a 
flash   of    summer    lightning    conceived    as    permanent.      It 
appeared  almost  always  in  the  south,  and  was  visible  from 
September  till  March,  during  which  period  it  was  to  us  the 
only  external  excitement  which  we  had.     The   illuminating 
power  of  the  Aurora,  when  its  colours  were  most  brilliant  and 
intense,  was  inferior  to  the  illuminating  power  of  the  full  moon. 


CHAP,  xv.]  THE  AURORA.  203 

Some  rare  cases  excepted,  this  was  either  so  small  or  so  tran- 
sitory, that  it  had  no  influence  on  the  darkness  of  our  long 
winter  nights.  Like  a  stream,  or  in  brilliant  convolutions,  the 
light  rushed  over  the  firmament,  as  well  from  east  to  west  as 
from  west  to  east.  The  formation  of  the  corona  (or  the  con- 
vergence of  the  streamers  in  the  direction  of  the  inclination 

& 

needle)  was  sudden,  and  short  in  its  duration,  and  frequently 
happened  more  than  once  in  the  course  of  a  night.  Its  great- 
est intensity  was  from  eight  till  ten  o'clock  at  night.  It  was 
never  accompanied  with  sound.1  The  sketch  we  have  given 
represents  one  of  its  most  characteristic  forms.  The  inner 
parts  of  the  flames  are  usually  whitish  green,  and  their  edge 
on  the  upper  side  red,  on  the  lower  green. 

4.  Brilliant  auroras  were  generally  succeeded  by  bad 
weather.  Those  on  the  other  hand  which  did  not  rise  to  any 
great  height  in  the  sky,  or  which  did  not  show  any  special 
mobility,  were  regarded  as  the  precursors  of  cairns.  None  of 
the  theories  which  have  been  ventilated  are  in  exact  accordance 
with  all  the  manifestations  of  these  northern  lights.  The 
undulating  motion  of  their  waves  of  light,  their  rolling  forth 
like  pillars  of  smoke  driven  by  winds,  has  hitherto  remained 
unexplained.  Although  electrical  processes,  still  unknown, 
seem  to  be  the  main  causes  of  the  Aurora,  atmospheric 
vapours  may,  however,  have  a  considerable  part  in  producing 
the  phenomenon  ;  and  nothing  so  much  favours  this  supposi- 
tion as  the  indefinite  form  in  which  it  often  appears.  Its 
occurrence  during  the  day,  i.e.  light  clouds  with  its  character- 
istic movement,  has  been  rather  imagined  than  actually 
observed.  The  transition  of  white  clouds  into  auroral  forms 
at  night  has  never  at  least  been  satisfactorily  proved.  Falling 
stars  pass  through  the  northern  lights  without  producing  any 
perceptible  effect,  or  undergoing  any  change.  A  dirty  sulphur 
yellow  was  characteristic  of  all  auroras  when  the  sky  was 
overcast  with  mists  or  when  they  were  seen  by  moonlight. 
In  clear  weather  they  were  colourless. 

1  It  has  dften  been  asserted  that  sound  accompanying  the  Aurora  has  been  heard 
in  the  Shetland  Isles,  and  in  Siberia  ;  but  all  scientific  travellers  protest  against 
this.  Franklin,  who  at  first  believed  in  this  alleged  phenomenon,  afterwards  re- 
tracted his  opinion,  and  was  convinced  that  the  noise  proceeded  from  terrestrial 
causes. 


CHAP,  xv.]  THE  AURORA.  205 

5.  Their  influence  on  the  magnetic  needle  was  very  variable. 
While  the  quiescent  and  regular  arches  had  little  or  no  effect, 
the  quicker  and  more  fitful  streamers,  especially  when  accom- 
panied with  prismatic  colours,  produced  great  disturbance  in 
it.  Sir  John  Ross  remarked,  that  the  aurora  when  tinged 
with  deep  red  colour  had  a  great  effect  on  it,  although  he 
completely  stultifies  his  observation  by  his  supposition,  that  the 
phenomenon  was  produced  by  rays  of  the  sun  reflected  on 
the  vast  fields  of  snow  and  ice  surrounding  the  Pole.  Parry 
in  1820  could  discover  no  effect  from  it  either  on  the  magnetic 
needle  or  on  the  electrometer.  During  the  winter  of  1872-3, 
the  character  of  the  northern  lights  was  much  altered,  though 
their  colour  remained  constant.  At  first  they  consisted  chiefly 
of  bands  of  light,  running  from  the  south  northwards.  At 
a  later  period  of  that  winter  they  assumed  for  the  most 
part  the  appearance  of  coronae,  and  then  their  direction  was 
from  the  north  southwards.  During  the  voyage  of  the 
Tegetthoff  the  observations  of  the  behaviour  of  these  lights 
and  of  the  magnetic  constants  were  taken  by  Weyprecht, 
Brosch,  and  Orel  by  means  of  a  magnetic  theodolite,  a 
dipping  needle,  and  three  variation  instruments.  The  extra- 
ordinary disturbances  of  the  needle  rendered  the  determina- 
tion of  exact  mean  values  for  the  magnetic  constants  impos- 
sible. The  diminution  of  their  intensity  was  considerable 
during  the  continuance  of  auroras.  In  79°  51'  N.  Lat.  and 
58°  56'  E.  Long,  the  declination  amounted  to  19^°  E.  and  the 
inclination  to  82°  22'.  The  ice-pressures  which  occurred  in 
December,  1873,  together  with  the  tedious  preliminaries  in 
fixing  the  magnetic  instruments,  prevented  these  officers  from 
carrying  out  their  labours  regularly  till  the  next  month.  The 
following  are  the  principal  results  of  these  observations  :  (i) 
-The  magnetic  disturbances  were  of  extraordinary  magnitude 
and  frequency.  (2)  They  were  closely  connected  with  the 
aurora ;  and  they  were  greater  as  the  motion  of  the  rays  was 
more  rapid  and  fitful,  and  the  prismatic  colours  more  intense. 
Quiescent  and  regular  arches,  without  changing  rays  or 
streamers,  exercise  almost  no  influence  on  the  needle.  (3)  In 
all  the  disturbances  the  declination  needle  moved  towards 
the  east,  and  the  horizontal  intensity  decreased  while  the 
inclination  increased. 


at- 

\'t     0 

206  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 2 


T^t 

/  <> 


6.  In  spite  of  the  extreme  difficulty  of  describing  the 
appearances  of  those  fitful  and  changing  lights,  I  believe  that 
the  following  description  of  Lieutenant  Weyprecht  will  be 
found  equally  faithful  and  effective  : — 

"There  in  the  south,  low  on  the  horizon,  stands  a  faint 
arch  of  light.  It  looks  as  it  were  the  upper  limit  of  a  dark 
segment  of  a  circle ;  but  the  stars  which  shine  through  it  in 
undiminished  brilliancy  convince  us  that  the  darkness  of  the 
segment  is  a  delusion  produced  by  contrast.  Gradually  the 
arch  of  light  grows  in  intensity  and  rises  to  the  zenith.  It  is 
perfectly  regular  ;  its  two  ends  almost  touch  the  horizon  and 
advance  to  the  east  and  west  in  proportion  as  the  arch  rises. 
No  beams  are  to  be  discovered  in  it,  but  the  whole  consists  of 
an  almost  uniform  light  of  a  delicious  tender  colour.  It  is  trans- 
parent white  with  a  shade  of  light  green,  not  unlike  the  pale 
green  of  a  young  plant  which  germinates  in  the  dark.  The 
light  of  the  moon  appears  yellow,  contrasted  with  this  tender 
colour  so  pleasing  to  the  eye,  and  so  indescribable  in  words,  a 
colour  which  nature  appears  to  have  given  only  to  the  Polar 
regions  by  way  of  compensation.  The  arch  is  broad,  thrice 
the  breadth,  perhaps,  of  the  rainbow,  and  its  distinctly  marked 
edges  are  strongly  defined  on  the  profound  darkness  of  the 
Arctic  heavens.  The  stars  shine  through  it  with  undiminished 
brilliancy.  The  arch  mounts  higher  and  higher.  An  air  of 
repose  seems  spread  over  the  whole  phenomenon  ;  here  and 
there  only  a  wave  of  light  rolls  slowly  from  one  side  to  the 
other.  It  begins  to  grow  clear  over  the  ice  ;  some  of  its 
groups  are  discernible.  The  arch  is  still  distant  from  the 
zenith ;  a  second  detaches  itself  from  the  dark  segment,  and 
this  is  gradually  succeeded  by  others.  All  now  rise  towards 
the  zenith  ;  the  first  passes  beyond  it,  then  sinks  slowly 
towards  the  northern  horizon  and  as  it  sinks  loses  its  inten- 
sity. Arches  of  light  are  now  stretched  over  the  whole 
heavens;  seven  are  apparent  at  the  same  time  on  the  sky, 
though  of  inferior  intensity.  The  lower  they  sink  towards 
the  north,  the  paler  they  grow,  -till  at  last  they  utterly  fade 
away.  Often  they  all  return  over  the  zenith,  and  become 
extinct,  just  as  they  came. 

"  It  is  seldom,  however,  that  an  aurora  runs  a  course  so 
calm  and  so  regular.     The  typical  dark  segment  which  we 


XV.]  THE  AURORA.  207 

see  in  treatises  on  the  subject,  in  most  cases  does  not  exist. 
A  thin  bank  of  clouds  lies  on  the  horizon.  The  upper  edge 
is  illuminated  ;  out  of  it  is  developed  a  band  of  light,  which 
expands,  increases  in  intensity  of  colour,  and  rises  to  the 
zenith.  The  colour  is  the  same  as  in  the  arch,  but  the  inten- 
sity of  the  colour  is  stronger.  The  colours  of  the  band 
change  in  a  never-ceasing  play,  but  place  and  form  remain 
unaltered.  The  band,  is  broad  and  its  intense  pale  green 
stands  out  with  wonderful  beauty  on  the  dark  background. 
Now  the  band  is  twisted  into  many  convolutions,  but  the 
innermost  folds  are  still  to  be  seen  distinctly  through  the 
others.  Waves  of  light  continually  undulate  rapidly  through 
its  whole  extent,  sometimes  from  right  to  left,  sometimes  from 
left  to  right.  Then  again  it  rolls  itself  up  in  graceful  folds. 
It  seems  almost  as  if  breezes  high  in  the  air  played  and 
sported  with  the  broad  flaming  streamers,  the  ends  of  which 
are  lost  far  off  on  the  horizon.  The  light  grows  in  intensity, 
the  waves  of  light  follow  each  other  more  rapidly,  prismatic 
colours  appear  on  the  upper  and  lower  edge  of  the  band,  the 
brilliant  white  of  the  centre  is  inclosed  between  narrow  stripes 
of  red  and  green.  Out  of  one  band  have  now  grown  two. 
The  upper  continually  approaches  the  zenith,  rays  begin  to 
shoot  forth  from  it  towards  a  point  near  the  zenith,  to  which 
the  south  pole  of  the  magnetic  needle,  freely  suspended^ 
points.  The  band  has  nearly  reached  it,  and  now  begins  a 
brilliant  play  of  rays  lasting  for  a  short  time,  the  central 
point  of  which  is  the  magnetic  pole — a  sign  of  the  intimate 
connection  of  the  whole  phenomenon  with  the  magnetic  forces 
of  the  earth.  Round  the  magnetic  pole  short  rays  flash  and 
flare  on  all  sides  ;  prismatic  colours  are  discernible  on  all 
their  edges ;  longer  and .  shorter  rays  alternate  with  each 
.other  ;  waves  of  light  roll  round  it  as  a  centre.  What  we  see  is 
the  auroral  corona  ;  and  it  is  almost  always  seen  when  a  band 
passes  over  the  magnetic  pole.  This  peculiar  phenomenon 
lasts  but  a  short  time — the  band  now  lies  on  the  northern  side 
of  the  firmament ;  gradually  it  sinks,  and  pales  as  it  sinks ;  it 
returns  again  to  the  south  to  change  and  play  as  before.  So 
it  goes  on  for  hours;  the  aurora  incessantly  changes  place, 
form,  and  intensity.  It  often  entirely  disappears  for  a  short 
time  only  to  appear  again  suddenly,  without  the  observers 


208  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

clearly  perceiving  how  it  came  and  where  it  went :  simply — it 
is  there. 

"  But  the  band  is  often  seen  in  a  perfectly  different  form. 
Frequently  it  consists  of  single  rays,  which,  standing  close 
together,  point  in  an  almost  parallel  direction  towards  the 
magnetic  pole.  These  become  more  intensely  bright  with 
each  successive  wave  of  light ;  hence  each  ray  appears  to  flash 
and  dart  continually,  and  their  green  and  red  edges  dance  up 
and  down  as  the  waves  of  light  run  through  them.  Often 
again  the  rays  extend  through  the  whole  length  of  the  band 
and  reach  almost  up  to  the  magnetic  pole.  These  are  sharply 
marked  but  lighter  in  colour  than  the  band  itself,  and  in  this 
particular  form  they  are  at  some  distance  from  each  other. 
Their  colour  is  yellow,  and  it  seems  as  if  thousands  of  slender 
threads  of  gold  were  stretched  across  the  firmament.  A  glori- 
ous veil  of  transparent  light  is  spread  over  the  starry  heavens  ; 
the  threads  of  light  with  which  this  veil  is  woven  are  dis- 
tinctly marked  on  the  dark  background  ;  its  lower  border  is  a 
broad,  intensely  white  band,  edged  with  green  and  red,  which 
twists  and  turns  in  constant  motion.  A  violet-coloured 
auroral  vapour  is  often  seen  simultaneously  on  different  parts 
of  the  sky. 

"  Or  again,  there  has  been  tempestuous  weather,  and  it  is 
now — let  us  suppose — passing  away.  Below  on  the  ice  the 
wind  has  fallen,  but  the  clouds  are  still  driving  rapidly  across 
the  sky,  so  that  in  the  upper  regions  its  force  is  not  yet  laid. 
Over  the  ice  it  becomes  somewhat  clear  ;  behind  the  clouds 
appears  an  aurora  amid  the  darkness  of  the  night.  Stars 
twinkle  here  and  there ;  through  the  openings  of  the  clouds 
we  see  the  dark  firmament  and  the  rays  of  the  aurora 
chasing  one  another  towards  the  zenith.  The  heavy  clouds 
disperse ;  mist-like  masses  drive  on  before  the  wind.  Frag- 
ments of  the  northern  lights  are  strewn  on  every  side  ;  it 
seems,  as  if  the  storm  had  torn  the  aurora  bands  to  tatters 
and  was  driving  them  hither  and  thither  across  the  sky. 
These  threads  change  form  and. place  with  incredible  rapidity. 
Here  is  one  !  lo,  it  is  gone !  scarcely  has  it  vanished  before  it 
appears  again  in  another  place.  Through  these  fragments 
drive  the  waves  of  light ;  one  moment  they  are  scarcely 
visible,  in  the  next  they  shine  with  intense  brilliancy.  But 


xv<]  THE  AURORA.  209 

their  light  is  no  longer  that  glorious  pale  green,  it  is  a  dull 
yellow.  It  is  often  difficult  to  distinguish  what  is  aurora  and 
what  is  vapour — the  illuminated  mists  as  they  fly  past  are 
scarcely  distinguishable  from  the  auroralVapour  which  comes 
and  goes  on  every  side. 

"  But,  again  another  form.  Bands  of  every  possible  form 
and  intensity  have  been  driving  over  the  heavens.  It  is  now 
eight  o'clock  at  night,  the  hour  of  the  greatest  intensity  of 
the  northern  lights.  For  a  moment  some  bundles  of  rays  only 
are  to  be  seen  in  the  sky.  In  the  south,  a  faint  scarcely- 
observable  band  lies  close  to  the  horizon.  All  at  once  it  rises 
rapidly  and  spreads  east  and  west.  The  waves  of  light  begin 
to  dart  and  shoot ;  some  rays  mount  towards  the  zenith.  For 
a  short  time  it  remains  stationary,  then  suddenly  springs  to 
life.  The  waves  of  light  drive  violently  from  east  to -west; 
the  edges  assume  a  deep  red  and  green  colour,  and  dance  up 
and  down.  The  rays  shoot  up  more  rapidly ;  they  become 
shorter ;  all  rise  together  and  approach  nearer  and  nearer  to 
the  magnetic  pole.  It  looks  as  if  there  were  a  race  among 
the  rays,  and  that  each  aspired  to  reach  the  pole  first.  And 
now  the  point  is  reached,  and  they  shoot  out  on  every  side,  to 
the  north  and  the  south,  to  the  east  and  the  west.  Do  the 
rays  shoot  from  above  downwards,  or  from  below  upwards  ? 
Who  can  distinguish  ?  From  the  centre  issues  a  sea  of  flames ; 
is  that  sea  red,  white,  or  green  ?  Who  can  say  ? — it  is  all  three 
colours  at  the  same  moment !  The  rays  reach  almost  to  the 
horizon  ;  the  whole  sky  is  in  flames.  Nature  displays  before 
us  such  an  exhibition  of  fireworks  as  transcends  the  powers 
of  imagination  to  conceive.  Involuntarily  we  listen  ;  such  a 
spectacle  must,  we  think,  be  accompanied  with  sound.  But 
unbroken  stillness  prevails,  not  the  least  sound  strikes  on  the 
ear.  Once  more  it  becomes  clear  over  the  ice,  and  the  whole 
phenomenon  has  disappeared  with  the  same  inconceivable 
rapidity  with  which  it  came,  and  gloomy  night  has  again 
stretched  her  dark  veil  over  everything.  This  was  the  aurora 
of  the  coming  storm — the  aurora  in  its  fullest  splendour.  No 
pencil  can  draw  it,  no  colours  can  paint  it,  and  no  words  can 
describe  it  in  all  its  magnificence.  And  here  below  stand 
we  poor  men,  and  speak  of  knowledge  and  progress,  and 


210  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  XV. 

pride  ourselves  on  the  understanding  with  which  we  extort 
from  Nature  her  mysteries.  We  stand  and  gaze  on  the 
mystery  which  Nature  has  written  for  us  in  flaming  letters  on 
the  dark  vault  of  night,  and  ultimately  we  can  only  wonder 
and  confess  that,  in  truth,  we  know  nothing  of  it." 


THE    EXPLORATION 
OF    KAISER   FRANZ-JOSEF   LAND. 

THE    SLEDGE    JOURNEYS. 


-..ffi.          .JV. 

ORIGIN. 

of 

KAISER  FRAN 

survt 

JULIUS 

- 

o      ft^T 

ea 

.  ;      ra 

J         ? 

Btecioft 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE  EXPLORATION   OF  KAISER  FRANZ-JOSEF  LAND 
RESOLVED  ON. 

I.  THE  necessity  of  returning  home  admitted  of  no  question; 
but  the  exploration  of  the  Land  of  which  we  had  seen  hardly 
anything,  beyond  the  cliffs  that  lay  in  our  immediate  neigh- 
bourhood, was  also  felt  to  be  a  necessity.  That  land,  which 
we  were  all  predisposed  to  imagine  as  stretching  far  beyond 
this  wall  of  rocks, — of  what  did  it  consist?  Was  it  an  island  or 
a  group  of  islands  ?  And  those  white  masses  lying  on  these 
lofty  ranges,  were  they  glaciers  ?  To  these  questions  no  one 
as  yet  could  give  an  answer.  But  of  this  there  could  be 
neither  doubt  nor  question,  that  we  could  not  count  on  our 
floe  for  a  moment,  and  that  those  were  lost  who  were  not  on 
board  the  ship  if  the  floe  with  the  ship  began  to  drift.  On 
the  1st  of  March  the  Tyrolese  announced,  that  a  fissure  had 
appeared  half-way  between  the  ship  and  the  shore,  and  the 
danger  of  being  cut  off  became  the  chief  subject  of  talk,  both 
in  the  cabin  of  the  officers  and  in  the  quarters  of  the  men. 
When,  however,  we  considered  the  importance  of  the  venture, 
all  hesitation  disappeared,  and  there  was  not  a  man  in  the 
ship  who  would  not  have  made  his  apprehensions  subordinate 
to  the  necessity  of  exploration. 

2.  As  the  commander  of  the  expedition  on  shore,  I  explained 
to  the  council  we  held  on  the  24th  of  February,  my  plan  for 
the  projected  sledge-journeys,  namely :  that  the  sledge-parties 
count  on  the  means  of  escape  being  left  behind  to  supple- 
ment those  they  may  have  at  their  command,  and  that  the 
depositing  of  these  means  be  completed  before  the  sledge- 
parties  start;  that  the  expeditions  shall  begin  between  the 


214  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

loth  and  2Oth  of  March,  be  continued  for  six  or  seven  weeks, 
and  take,  if  possible,  the  following  directions  : — one  along  the 
coast  towards  the  North,  a  second  towards  the  West,  and  a 
third  into  the  interior,  and  each  to  be  concluded  by  the  ascent 
of  a  dominating  height ;  that  in  the  event  of  the  sledge-parties 
not  finding  the  ship  on  their  return,  they  should  attempt  to  go 
back  at  once  to  Europe,  and  only  under  the  most  urgent 
circumstances  pass  a  third  winter  in  the  ice,  though  the  super- 
fluous stores,  which  were  to  be  transported  to  the  land,  would 
to  a  certain  extent  enable  them  to  do  this.  I  engaged  also 
not  to  extend  these  journeys  to  a  date  which  would  prevent 
the  men  recruiting  their  strength  before  the  return  of  the 
whole  expedition  to  Europe. 

3.  The  exploration  of  the  strange  land  having  been  resolved 
on,  the  greatest  activity  reigned  in  the  ship.     There  was  not 
a  man  on  board  the  Tegetthoff  who  was  not  eager  to  prepare 
for  the  sledge-journeys,  though  all  knew  that  besides  the  two 
Tyrolese  only  four  men  were  to  accompany  me.     Every  one 
longed  to  take  part  in  the  exploration  of  the  unknown  land, 
and  the  monotony  of  our  life  was  now  exchanged  for  a  state 
of  great  excitement ;  a  great  venture  had  been  resolved  on, 
and  expectations  rose  with  the  possibility  of  discoveries.    The 
comparatively  short  period  for  which  our  stores  had  now  to 
last  enabled  us  to  indulge  in  what,  under  the  circumstances, 
might  be  called  luxury.     We  could  thus  dispose  of  more  than 
two  hundred  bottles  of  wine,  which  had  been  reserved  for  the 
sick  in  the  event  of  a  third  winter  being  passed  in  the  ice. 
Three-and-twenty   men    now   in   three    months    drank    two 
hundred  bottles  of  wine  and  smoked  like  chimneys  the  super- 
fluous   stores    of    cigars    and   tobacco.       Potatoes,    preserved 
vegetables  and  fruit,  were  daily  on  our  table.     Our  allowance 
of  rum  was  increased;  lights  were  freely  burnt  in  every  corner, 
and  the  novel  sensation  of  luxury  was  universal. 

4.  While  we  were  all  living  as  if  the  oppressive  load  under 
which  we  had  lain  so  long  had  suddenly  been  removed,  in 
these  days  of  general  hilarity  and  amid  the  excitement  of 
new  plans,  our  comrade  Krisch  drew  toward  his  sad  and 
melancholy  end.  From  the  beginning  of  February  his 
malady  had  made  great  progress.  His  body  was  covered 
with  scorbutic  spots  ;  but  in  spite  of  all  this  the  hope  of  speedy 


I.]        EXPLORATION  OF  KAISER  FRANZ-JOSEF  LAND.      215 

recovery  constantly  animated  our  afflicted  companion,  who 
set  us  a  lofty  example  of  the  fulfilment  of  duty  by  his  zealous 
activity.  In  the  summer,  though  already  under  the  influence 
of  his  mortal  disease,  he  had  been  busy  in  the  construction  of 
new  ice-saws  and  borers,  in  order  that  he  might  contribute 
something  to  the  liberation  of  the  ship,  and  when  he  heard  of 
the  projected  expeditions  to  Franz-Josef  Land,  he  gathered 
sufficient  strength  to  extort  from  me  the  assurance  that  I 
would  take  him  with  me.  But  his  end  was  surely  though 
slowly  drawing  on ;  his  nights  were  sleepless,  and  pain  left 
him  neither  day  nor  night.  At  the  beginning  of  March  a 
state  of  unconsciousness  supervened,  and  the  action  of  his 
diseased  lungs  was  now  to.  be  heard  in  an  uninterrupted 
rattling  in  his  throat.  Moments  of  mental  clearness  became 
more  infrequent  in  his  delirium  ;  help  had  become  impossible ; 
all  the  care  of  our  physician  and  of  the  watchers,  who  never 
left  him,  was  now  directed  merely  to  the  alleviation  of  his 
sufferings.  He  lingered  till  we  returned  from  our  first  sledge 
expedition  on  the  i6th  of  March. 


KBISCH,   THE  ENGINEER. 


CHAPTER  II. 

OF  SLEDGE  TRAVELLING  IN  GENERAL. 

I.  THE  sledge  is  pre-eminently  the  means  of  geographical 
exploration  in  high  latitudes,  and  as  discovery  now  forms  the 
main  purpose  of  Polar  expeditions,  it  may  be  important  to 
describe  clearly  and  precisely  the  system  we  followed,  that 
others  may  either  adopt  or  improve  on  our  methods.  Thus  I 
will  enter  into  many  details,  not  in  order  to  dwell  on  the 
inconveniences  incident  to  this  mode  of  travelling,  but  to 
show  how  the  greatest  amount  of  safety  and  protection  may 
be  secured  to  the  sledge-party. 

2.  Sledge-journeys  presuppose  that  the  ship  is  safe  and 
secure  in  a  winter  harbour.  A  ship  which  has  not  yet  com- 
pleted its  summer  voyage  should  avoid  them  as  exceedingly 
hazardous  ;  and  as  a  principle  such  expeditions  are  to  be 
absolutely  declined  by  a  ship  which  is  beset  in  the  ice ;  the 
success  which  may  have  attended  some  must  by  no  means 
stimulate  others  to  imitate  them.  Their  object  is  the  ex- 
ploration of  lands  still  unknown  or  imperfectly  known.  They 
presuppose  also  the  existence  of  ice,  closely  adhering  to  a 
coast,  on  which  the  journeys  are  performed,  and  this  coast- 
line must  run  in  a  northerly  direction,  if  the  North  Pole  be 
the  goal  of  discovery.  Though  sledge-parties  follow  the 
coast-line  they  actually  travel  on  the  frozen  sea1;  for  it  is 
never  safe  to  abandon  that  line  and  make  for  pack-ice  at  a 
distance  from  it.  The  crossing  of  glaciers,  however  small 
may  be  their  inclination,  is  always  attended  with  danger ;  and 
if  the  route  be  stopped  by  a  stretch  of  land  whose  extent 
forbids  dragging,  it  is  of  course  impossible  to  proceed.  The 
roughness  of  the  land  and  its  insufficient  covering  of  snow 


CHAP.   II.]     OF  SLEDGE  TRAVELLING  IN  GENERAL.  217 

even  in  winter  sufficiently  explain  this.  A  sledge  cannot,  for 
any  considerable  length  of  time,  be  dragged  up  an  inclination 
exceeding  two  or  three  degrees. 

3.  The  season  of  the  year  for  sledging  must  depend  on  the 
climate  of  particular  Arctic  localities,  and  the  capacity  of  the 
men  to  endure  low  temperatures  during  the  night-camping, 
and  driving  snow  during  the  march.     It  is  advisable,  when 
more  than  one  year  is  to  be  spent  in  the  ice,  to  begin  the 
more  extended  sledge-journeys  in  the  first  year,  because  the 
capacities  of  Europeans  to  endure  cold  rather  decrease  than 
increase.     Sir  John  Ross,  for  example,  says  that  his  people  at 
the   beginning   of  a  third   winter  were  incapable  of  bearing 
hardships,    especially   those  of  travelling   on    the   ice.      The 
best  season  for  sledging  must  always  be  that  time  of  the  year 
when  snow-storms  are  infrequent,  for   even   a   healthy   and 
seasoned  party  will  more  easily  confront  a  very  low  temper- 
ature than  driving  snow-storms.     As  a  rule,  these  conditions 
are  found  most  perfectly  in  autumn  ;  and  I  do  not  understand 
the  objection  which  Hayes  makes  to  this  season  as  being  the 
most  damp  ;  whereas  as  a  matter  of  fact  it  is  the  least  so. 
Autumn  journeys  are  preferable  to  those  in  spring,  both  with 
respect  to  climate  and  the  state  of  the  road  ;  only  they  must 
be  commenced   early,  on  account  of  the  rapidly  decreasing 
length  of  the  days.1     The  darkness  of  winter  puts  an  end  to 
all  sledging,  and  the  excessive  cold  of  spring  renders  it  difficult. 
Summer  makes  it  impossible  by  breaking  up  the  land-ice,  or 
impedes  it  by   transforming   the  snow  into  thaw-water  and 
sludge.     Next  to  autumn,  therefore,  the  latter  part  of  March, 
all  April,  and  a  part  of  May,  are  most  adapted  for  this  pur- 
pose.    It  must  at  the  same  time  be  remarked,  that  Captain 
Lyon   (1822)   and  Dr.   Kane  regarded    March    as  peculiarly 
dangerous  on  account  of  the  prevalence  of  storms. 

4.  Next  to  the  season,  the  state  of  the  snow  road,  depend- 
ing on  the  hardening   action   of  wind  and  cold,   has  to   be 
considered.     The  cold  should  not  vary  more  than  from  -  2°  to 
-  24°  R,  because  greater  frost  transforms  the  smooth  evaporat- 
ing surface  of  snow  into  a  rough  plain,  bestrewed  with  sharp 
pointed  crystals,  so  that  the  sledge  instead  of  gliding  along 

1   Experience  acquired  both  in  Greenland  and  in  Franz-Josef  Land  convinces  me 
that  autumn  is  to  be  preferred  to  spring  for  sledge-journeys. 
16 

A 


218  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

encounters  the  friction,  as  if  of  a  sandstone  surface,  and  stops 
at  the  least  obstacle.  Snow  of  an  ivory-like  smoothness  rarely 
occurs  ;  on  the  contrary,  we  find  the  snow  in  deep  layers  as 
fine  as  powder,  into  which  we  sink  knee-deep,  or  among 
barriers  of  hummocks,  miles  in  extent,  which  impose  enormous 
detours  in  the  transport  of  the  baggage.  During  the  journey 
from  2°  to  13°  below  zero  F.  constitutes  the  pleasantest  tem- 
perature, and  even  the  nights,  under  this  condition,  are  passed 
without  inconvenience  by  a  party  inured  to  exposure.  Snow- 
storms, however,  in  their  mildest  form — snow-drifting — are,  at 
this  moderate  temperature,  distressing  and  dangerous.  In 
fact,  among  all  the  contingencies  which  may  occur  during  a 
Polar  expedition,  there  is  no  severer  test  of  enduring  persever- 
ance than  dragging  a  sledge  in  the  face  of  drifting  snow  at  a 
temperature  from  13°  to  35°  below  zero  F. 

5.  The  ship  in  its  winter  harbour  is  the  only  place  of  refuge, 
in  all  cases  where  a  meeting  with  Eskimos  cannot  be  counted 
on.  Except  for  the  accidents  of  hunting,  on  which  no 
dependence  should  be  placed,  the  country  itself  affords  no 
kind  of  means  of  subsistence ;  hence  all  the  necessaries  of 
life  must  be  carried  in  the  sledges.  The  heavily  laden  sledge 
becomes  in  truth  a  ship  of  the  icy  wastes,  and  its  loss  involves 
the  destruction  of  the  whole  party.  In  order  to  lighten  its 
load  and  yet  prolong  the  journey  as  much  as  possible,  supplies 
of  provisions  are  often  deposited  along  the  routes  to  be 
traversed.  This  may  be  done,  either  by  previous  shorter 
journeys,  or  by  leaving  behind  a  part  of  the  provisions  which 
have  been  taken  from  the  ship,  or  by  burying  the  product  of 
the  chase  in  the  manner  adopted  by  fur-hunters  and  Indians. 
The  danger  to  such  stores  from  the  inroads  of  bears  or  the 
breaking  up  of  the  ice  must  be  guarded  against  by  a  careful 
selection  of  localities  ;  and  the  place  being  chosen,  the  pro- 
visions should  either  be  buried  four  feet  deep  in  snow  between 
steep  rocks,  somewhat  above  the  level  of  the  sea,  or  the  bags 
containing  them  should  be  suspended  on  the  inaccessible  faces 
of  the  rocks.  The  choice  of  an  elevated  point  is  some  security 
against  visits  from  bears.  But  it  is  never  advisable  to  build 
confidently  on  finding  the  depot,  or  to  make  the  possibility  of 
return  dependent  on  this  contingency.  A  small  stock  of  the 
necessaries  of  life  should  always  be  kept  in  reserve,  as  a 


U.J  OF  SLEDGE  TRAVELLING  IN  GENERAL.  219 

prudent  precaution  in  case  the  depot  should  be  destroyed.  If 
however  the  depots  remain  untouched  and  uninjured,  and 
their  numbers  be  considerable,  the  duration  of  the  journey, 
which  can  be  prolonged  for  thirty  or  forty  days  only  where 
provisions  are  carried  in  the  sledges,  may  thus  be  doubled  in 
extent.  The  depots  for  journeys  in  the  spring  are  often 
formed  in  the  preceding  autumn,  though  their  preservation  is 
of  course  exposed  to  great  risk. 

6.  Sledges  are  dragged  sometimes  by  men  and  dogs  con- 
jointly, sometimes  by  men  without  dogs,  or  by  dogs  alone. 
Reindeer  are  found  to  be  unfit  for  sledge  dragging ;  although 
Parry  in  former  days,  and  Nordenskjold  more  recently,  fre- 
quently attempted  to  employ  them  in  this  service.     Though 
a  reindeer  is  able  to  make  with  a  sledge  as  many  as  120  miles 
in  three   days,   it  cannot  continue  such  efforts  without  long 
periods  of  repose,  nor  drag  the  heavy  loads  which  are  requisite 
in    longer    journeys.       Besides   this,   he   who    has   had    any 
experience  in  this  mode  of  travelling,  knows  the  unaccount- 
able capriciousness  of  these  animals,  their  stubbornness,  and 
the  difficulty  of  feeding   them.     Natives  alone  are  able   to 
manage   them,    while   to   strangers   they    refuse    subjection. 
When  the  sledges  are  dragged  by  men  alone,   unexpected 
contingencies  are  less  to  be  apprehended,  but  at  the  same  time 
their  rate  of  progress  is  diminished.     In  an  expedition  calcu- 
lated to  last  a  month,  ten  miles  constitute  the  average  day's 
march,  when  circumstances  are  favourable.     If  the  length  of 
the  journey  be  prolonged,  this  average  will  be  considerably 
diminished.     The  combination  of  men  and  dogs  in  the  work 
of  dragging  accelerates  the  speed.     With  regard  to  the  men 
employed  in  this  work,  it  is  advisable  to  engage  experienced 
mountaineers  l  of  great  bodily  strength,  such  men  being  able 
to  do  work  for  which,  it  is  admitted,  sailors  have  neither  train- 
ing nor  inclination. 

7.  No  form  of  sledge  travelling,  when  measured  by  results, 
can  be  compared  with  sledging  by  the  help  of  dogs  alone  ; 
for  this  method  enables  us  to  compass  the  greatest  possible 
distance,  and  diminishes  the  dead-weight  of  the  load  in  the 
sledge.     Besides  this,  dogs  are  not  only  active  but  tractable  ; 

1  This  is  the  reason  why  the  English  North  Pole  Expedition  has  engaged  the 
services  of  two  mountaineers  accustomed  to  glacier  travelling. 


220  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

they  show  no  fear  ;  they  can  endure  hunger  longer  than  men, 
even  while  making  great  exertions  ;  they  neither  drink  nor 
smoke  ;  neither  fuel  for  the  stove  to  liquefy  the  snow,  nor 
tent,  nor  sleeping  bag,  need  be  taken  for  them ;  none,  in  fact, 
of  those  many  little  things  which  are  indispensable  for  men. 
In  extreme  necessity  they  may  be  even  used  for  food.  And 
since  a  strong  dog  is  able  to  drag,  even  for  a  long  journey, 
double  of  what  he  needs  for  his  own  support,  the  surplus  falls 
to  the  share  of  the  man  who  accompanies  him,  and  who  is 
able,  therefore,  to  prolong  his  absence  from  the  ship.  With- 
out considering  the  forced  marches  which  Englishmen, 
Americans,  and  Russians  have  frequently  made  on  the  ice 
with  a  number  of  dogs,  the  employment  of  a  few  dogs  in 
sledge  expeditions  has  such  conspicuous  advantage  over  teams 
of  men,  that  I  would  earnestly  recommend  the  following 
method  of  procedure  :  two  teams  of  dogs,  each  of  two  or 
four  strong  Newfoundlands,  should  be  employed,  one  to  be 
driven  by  the  leader  of  the  expedition  and  the  other  by  one 
of  the  most  experienced  and  trustworthy  of  the  party.  Each 
sledge  should  carry  at  starting,  a  weight  of  from  4  to  7  cwt., 
i.e.  provisions  for  thirty  to  fifty  days,  only  needing  a  slight 
supplement  from  the  products  of  the  chase.  Sixteen  miles  a 
day,  on  an  average,  •  may  easily  be  thus  accomplished, 
especially  if  the  rest  of  the  party  attached  to  each  sledge 
walk  on  before  their  respective  teams.  Distances  varying 
from  500  to  800  miles  may  thus  be  reached,  while  300  or  at 
the  most  500  miles  are  all  that  men  alone  in  the  same  time 
can  perform.  Journeys  of  this  kind  require  much  experience, 
so  that  those  men  only  are  serviceable  who  have  much 
practical  acquaintance  with  life  in  the  Arctic  wastes,  and  not 
merely  with  life  as  it  is  in  the  ship,  but  who  are  inured  to 
fatigues  and  skilled  in  the  use  of  those  precautions  which 
distance  .from  the  ship  imperatively  demands  during  the  pre- 
valence of  extreme  cold.  With  regard  to  the  route  itself, 
whenever  the  object  is  the  reaching  of  higher  latitudes  and 
the  exploration  of  a  still  unknown  country,  it  is  advisable  to 
choose  one  from  four  to  eight  miles  distant  from  the  land. 
The  search  for  a  route  is  greatly  facilitated  whenever  we  can 
ascend  dominating  heights  to  enable  us  to  determine  our 
position.  Such  a  course  not  only  saves  us  from  the  necessity 


II.]  OF  SLEDGE  TRAVELLING  IN  GENERAL.  221 

of  making  detours,  but  affords  the  only  possibility  of  being 
able  to  touch  the  land  at  desirable  points  and  of  ascertaining 
the  character  of  the  intervening  districts.  A  survey  may  be 
made  either  by  triangulation,  the  base  being  measured  by 
those  who  remain  behind  in  the  ship  and  the  summits  of  the 
mountains  serving  as  the  points  of  the  triangles,  or  by  the 
determination  of  the  geographical  latitude  and  longitude  of 
the  different  spots.  The  combination  of  both  methods  is  of 
course  most  desirable. 

8.  The  following  instruments  may  be  employed  in  sledge 
journeys,  according  to  the  degree  of  exactness  which  is 
required  :  a  small  universal  instrument,  a  sextant  with  an 
artificial  horizon,  a  pocket  chronometer,  an  azimuth  compass, 
a  boat  compass  of  simple  construction,  an  alcohol  and 
mercurial  thermometer,  and  two  small  aneroids. 


•  CHAPTER   III. 

THE  EQUIPMENT  OF  A   SLEDGE  EXPEDITION. 

I.  THE  equipment  of  a  sledge  expedition  on  a  large  scale* 
demands  an  amount  of  circumspection  and  precision  which 
experience  alone  can  give,  and  its  safety  and  success  may  be 
endangered  by  the  neglect  of  apparently  trifling  precautions. 
At  a  distance  from  the  ship  the  most  formidable  dangers  may 
arise,  from  allowing  the  matches  to  become  damp,  from  the 
leaking  or  the  loss  of  a  vessel  containing  spirit,  from  the 
setting  fire  to  a  tent,  which  only  too  probably  may  happen 
from  the  carelessness  of  the  cook,  to  say  nothing  of  those  yet 
greater  perils, — the  inability  of  some  of  the  party  to  march, 
the  destruction  of  depots  of  provisions  by  bears,  or  the 
breaking  in  of  the  sea.  The  first  principle  in  fitting  out  such 
an  expedition  should  be  the  rejection  of  everything  not 
absolutely  necessary  for  the  support  of  life,  the  instruments 
only  excepted ;  and  the  second,  that  the  whole  of  the 
travelling  gear  should  be  of  the  most  perfect  and  convenient 
form.  The  departure  from  these  rules  contributed,  among 
other  things,  to  the  melancholy  issue  of  the  Franklin  expedi- 
tion. McClintock  speaks  most  emphatically  of  the  evils  of 
over-loading  with  things  not  absolutely  necessary.  The 
success  of  an  undertaking  may  be  defeated  by  the  neglect 
even  of  things  apparently  insignificant.  Mojsejew's  sledge 
expedition  along  the  coast  of  Novaya  Zemlya  in  1839  was  a 
proof  and  illustration  of  this.  Tt  was  wrecked  within  a  few 
days  by  the  snow-blindness  of  the  entire  party,  caused  by 
their  want  of  snow-spectacles.  If  we  except  the  journeys  of 
the  Russian  explorers  of  the  Siberian  coast,  carried  out,  how- 
ever, at  the  sacrifice  of  the  whole  nomad  population,  and  of 


CH.  in.]   THE  EQUIPMENT  OF  A  SLEDGE  EXPEDITION.  223 

all  the  dogs  and  reindeer  of  North  Asia — from  which  to  this 
day  the  exhausted  country  has  not  recovered — the  merit  of 
the  organization  of  sledge  expeditions  belongs  pre-eminently 
to  the  English.  It  was  by  Parry  and  James  Ross  that  those 
experiments  with  sledges  were  begun,  which  have  since  been 
brought  nearly  to  perfection  by  McClintock.1  The  method  thus 
perfected  serves  to  this  day  as  a  pattern  to  be  imitated,  as  it 
enables  a  party  of  men,  inured  to  hardships  and  fatigues,  to 
pass  many  weeks  without  the  help  of  those  resources  which 
only  a  ship  in  such  icy  wastes  can  afford.  I  will  now  endea- 
vour to  describe  with  sufficient  detail  the  equipment  of  our 
sledges  in  the  journeys  we  carried  out. 

2.  The  changeableness  of  the  weather  during  the  season 
for  sledging,  and  the  character  of  our  expeditions,  required 
the  employment  of  three  sledges  of  different  sizes.  The 
smallest  of  these  was  a  dog-sledge,  and  the  two  others  were 
larger  and  intended  to  be  drawn  by  men.  The  runners  were 
respectively  6,  8  and  1 1  feet  long,  and  ij,  2  and  2f  inches 
broad  2 — gently  curved  at  each  end — and  about  one  foot  high, 
so  as  to  raise  the  lading  above  the  snow.  The  sledges  were 
constructed  of  the  best  ash,  and  carried  loads  amounting  to  7, 
12,  and  20  cwts.  respectively.  The  two  runners  were  fastened 
together  by  two  strong  front  boards,  and  by  four  cross-pieces 
of  wood  firmly  lashed  to  the  upright  standards  of  the  sledge, 
which  were  themselves  dovetailed  into  the  runners.  Screws 
were  sparingly  used,  and  chiefly  in  the  fittings  of  the  two 
horns  of  the  sledge,  and  of  the  rail  on  which  the  rifles  were 
suspended,  and  which  also  was  used  to  push  and  guide  the 
sledge.  The  rail  was,  therefore,  of  considerable  strength,  in 
order  to  withstand  the  pressure  of  a  man's  force.  The  runners 
were  shod  with  steel  carefully  riveted  on.  The  accompany- 
jng  sketch  shows  the  manner  in.  which  a  sledge  is  drawn  by  a 

1  I  take  this  opportunity  of  fulfilling  a  duty  of  gratitude,  when  I  add  that  in  our 
equipment  we  followed,  in  every  respect,  the  tried  and  tested  advice  of  Admiral 
McClintock,  and  that  to  this  we  owed  for  the  most  part  such  successes  as  we 
achieved. 

2  Broad  runners  facilitate  progress  through  deep  snow.     March  7,  1874,  we 
scarcely  could  move  a  sledge  of  medium  size  with  its  load,  though  we  afterwards 
transported  the  same  load  easily  with  a  sledge  with  broader,  runners ;  and  the 
former  became  available  when   we  fastened  a  pair  of   Lapp  snow-shoes  on  its 
runners. 


224 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


team  of  men  and  dogs  combined.  Those  who  take  the 
longest  steps  in  the  march  should  precede,  and  the  less  active 
should  be  placed  in  the  middle,  so  that  any  slackness  may 
be  easily  detected  ;  for  in  a  sledge  journey  it  is  disgraceful 
to  draw  a  weight  less  than  the  weight  of  what  we  can  eat. 


TEAM  OF  SEVEN  MEN  AND  THREE  DOGS. 


The  centre  trace  should  never  be  grasped,  as  this  diminishes 
the  force  of  the  pull. 

3.  The  proper  construction  of  the  cooking  apparatus  is  of 
the  greatest  importance,  the  great  principle  being  to  develop 
heat  and  prevent  its  escape  as  much  as  possible.  The  accom- 
panying woodcut  represents  an  apparatus  which  excellently 
well  fulfils  this  condition.  A,  is  the  inner  compartment ;  B, 
the  holder  containing  about  a  bottle  .of  spirit,  with  seven 
wicks ;  C,  the  covered  pan  for  cooking ;  I),  the  outer  case  ; 
and  E,  a  pan  filled  with  snow  and  fitted  with  a  moveable 
handle,  which,  being  placed  over  an  opening  in  the  outer  case, 
utilizes  the  ascending  heat,  which  would  otherwise  escape,  to 
liquefy  the  snow.  The  apparatus  should  be  made  of  sheet 


THE   COOKING   APPARATUS. 


iron,  each  of  its  parts  of  one  piece,  and  there  should  be  no 
soldering,  in  order  to  diminish  'the  risk  of  breakage  and  the 
setting  fire  to  the  tent  by  the  escape  of  the  spirit  in  a  state  of 
combustion.  These  cooking  machines  should  be  of  different 
sizes,  according  to  the  number  of  men  in  the  expedition.  The 
largest  of  those  used  by  us  consumed  fib.  of  spirits  of  wine 


ill.]      THE  EQUIPMENT  OF  A  SLEDGE  EXPEDITION.       225 

to  convert  snow,  with  a  thermometer  from  13°  to  22°  below 
zero  F.,  into  three  gallons  of  boiling  water.  On  account  of 
the  smaller  consumption  of  alcohol,  it  is  better  to  use  ice  than 
snow  for  the  purpose  of  cooking. 

4.  Alcohol  of  the  greatest  purity  and  strength  is  the  best 
fuel,  and  is  most  easily  transported  in  vessels  containing  about 
ten  gallons.     Next  to  alcohol,  stearine  is  most  to  be  recom- 
mended, on  account  of  its  great  heating  powers  ;  and  then 
train-oil,  though  the  smoke  and  dirt  produced  by  it  in  the 
tent  are  almost  unbearable  evils.     Petroleum  ought  not  to  be 
employed,  on  account  of  its  dangerous  character  and  its  being 
prejudicial  to  health.      Wood  and  coals  generate   too  little 
heat  in  proportion  to  their,  bulk.     Parry  was  the  first  whor 
in  his  journey  of  1827,  employed  spirits  of  wine ;  he  still  used 
wood  and  coals  in  1820  and  Lyon  in  1822. 

5.  The  nights  are  passed  either  in  snow  huts,  or  in  tents. 
If  tents  be  used,  the  climate  must  determine  their  material,, 
whether  cotton  or  sailcloth.     A  mackintosh  floor-cloth  should 
always  be  spread  over  the  ground  of  the  tent.     It  is  indis- 
pensable to  make  the  walls  of  the  snow  huts  two  or  three 
feet  high,  in  order  to  allow  room  for  movement,  and  the  closed 
side,  i.e.  the  side  opposite  the  entrance,  must  be  made  double, 
as  it  is  always   exposed  to  the  direction  of  the  wind.     The 
tent  entrance  must  be  carefully  closed  with  hooks  and  rings, 
and  should  not  reach  to  the  ground.     A  tent  formed  by  two 
poles,  about  eight  feet  long,  crossed  at  each  end,  with  another 
to  rest  on  these  supports,  is  the  most  simple  and  secure  form 
of  erection.     During  the  journey,  a  small  sail  may  be  advan- 
tageously used,  whenever  the  wind  is  favourable  ;  one  of  the 
tent-poles  may  be  used  as  a  mast,  and  an  "  Alpine  stock  "  may 
serve  as  a  yard  for  the  sail. 

,  6.  The  sledge  party  passes  the  night  in  a  common  sleeping 
bag,  in  which  there  may  be,  under  propitious  circumstances, 
smaller  separate  bags  for  each.  When  the  temperature  is  not 
below  —  13°  F.,  the  sleeping  bag  may  be  made  out  of  a  warm 
strong  quilt;  but  when  the  cold  is  more  intense,  it  must  be  made 
of  buffalo-skin,  and  to  prevent  its  being  pulled  off  during  the 
night  it  should  be  buttoned  at  the  top  in  the  middle.  Sheep- 
skins cannot  be  recommended  for  this  purpose,  as  they  are 
far  heavier  than  buffalo-skins  ;  and  as  they  more  easily  collect 


226  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 


moisture,  so  they  freeze  more  quickly.  The  sleeping  bag 
should  always  be  wrapped  up  in  the  tent  and  packed  with  it 
on  the  sledge,  so  that  it  may  come  as  little  as  possible  in 
contact  with  the  snow.  If  the  temperature  should  fall  below 
—  35°  F.,  the  travelling  party  suffers  greatly  from  the  frost 
even  in  such  a  sleeping  bag,  and  it  would  then  be  advisable 
to  lay  an  inflated  india-rubber  mattress  under  the  bag,  so 
that  only  the  legs  of  the  sleepers  should  be  exposed  to  the 
influence  of  the  cold. 

7.  As  for  arms,  it  is  enough  to  have  three  double-barrelled 
Lefaucheux  rifles  and   one  revolver;    and  even  in   districts 
where  encounters  with  bears  may  be  daily  expected,  three 
cartridges  a  day  are  a  sufficient  stock  of  ammunition.    These 
should    be    explosive   shells,  with  steel  points.     Small  shot 
cartridges  are  indispensable  on  sledge  expeditions,  as  birds 
are  not  unfrequently  met  with.     When  the  cold  is  excessive, 
great  caution  must  be  used  with  the  cock  of  the  lock,  as  the 
brittleness  of  the  metal  then  causes  it  to  be  easily  broken ; 
and  from  the  same  cause  the  hammer  will  often  not  stand  at 
half-cock.      The   guns   must  not  be  oiled,  as  it  sometimes 
happens   that   the   hammer   on  full-cock  will  not  go  down 
where  the  lock  is  smeared  with  oil.     Light  woollen  gloves 
should  be  worn  for  shooting,  in  order  that  the  fingers  may 
not  be  frozen  in  handling  the  guns. 

8.  A  chest,  fixed  on  the  fore-part  of  the  sledge,  contains 
the  instruments  used  in  surveying  and  in  the  determination 
of  localities  ;  also  a  thermometer  and  an  aneroid  barometer, 
lucifer  matches  and  cartridges,  packed  in  tin  boxes  and  care- 
fully protected   from  damp ;  a  supply  of  nails  and  screws, 
wind-screens  for  the  travellers,  sewing  materials,  the  spoons 
of  the  party,  extra  soles  of  felt  for   shoes,   medical  stores, 
brushes,  sketch-book,  flags,  and  a  supply  of  light  cord.     The 
pocket-chronometer  must  be  worn  in  close  contact  with  the 
body   of  the  leader  of   the  party,   to  guard  it  against   the 
hurtful  influences  of  the  cold. 

9.  The    provisions    should    be    placed    below    everything, 
when  the  sledge  is  loaded.     The  daily  allowance  for  each 
man  ought  to  be  increased  by  half  a  pound  above  the  usual 
rations  on  board  ship,  so  that  about  2j  Ibs.  or  2f  Ibs.  of  solid 
food  fall  to  the  share  of  each  man,  and  about  an  equal  weight 


III.]       THE  EQUIPMENT  OF  A  SLEDGE  EXPEDITION.       227 

to  each  dog.  McClintock  allowed  2^-  to  3  Ibs.  a  head  for  the 
men  ;  but  only  I  Ib.  pemmican  a  day  for  the  Eskimo  dogs. 
Hayes  calculates  provisions  for  fourteen  dogs  for  twelve  days 
at  300  Ibs. — almost  2  Ibs.  a  day  ;  and,  on  another  occasion,  for 
fifteen  dogs  for  thirty-eight  days,  at  800  Ibs  ;  and  considers 
i^  Ibs.  for  Eskimo  dogs  as  too  little,  when  great  demands  are 
made  on  their  strength  and  endurance.  From  my  own 
experience,  I  should  say,  that  the  least  diminution  of  this 
quantity  of  nourishment  reduces  the  capacity  to  endure  great 
cold  and  excessive  exertions,  and  produces,  after  even  a  few 
days,  a  feeling  of  lassitude  both  in  the  men  and  the  dogs, 
harder  to  endure  than  even  the  sensation  of  hunger.  Parry, 
in  his  sledge  and  boat  expedition  of  1827,  found  that  looz.  of 
biscuit  and  9  oz.  of  pemmican  were  hardly  sufficient  to  sustain 
a  man's  strength.  "  It  may  be  useful,"  he  observes,1  "  to 
remark,  as  the  result  of  absolute  experience,  that  our  daily 
allowance  of  provisions,  although  previously  tried  for  some 
days  on  board  the  ship,  and  then  considered  to  be  enough, 
proved  by  no  means  sufficient  to  support  the  strength  of  men 
living  constantly  in  the  open  air,  exposed  to  wet  and  cold  for 
at  least  twelve  hours  a  day,  seldom  enjoying  the  luxury  of  a 
warm  meal,  and  having  to  perform  the  kind  of  labour  to 
which  our  people  were  subject.  I  have  before  remarked, 
that,  previously  to  our  return  to  the  ship,  our  strength  was 
considerably  impaired,  and,  indeed,  there  is  reason  to  believe, 
very  soon  after  entering  upon  the  ice  the  physical  energies 
of  the  men  were  gradually  diminishing,  although  for  the  first 
few  weeks  they  did  not  appear  to  labour  under  any  specific 
complaint.  This  diminishing  of  strength,  which  we  con- 
sidered to  be  owing  to  the  want  of  sufficient  sustenance, 
became  apparent,  even  after  a  fortnight,  in  the  lifting  of  the 
bread  bags ;  and  I  have  no  doubt  that,  in  spite  of  every  care 
on  the  part  of  the  officers,  some  of  the  men,  who  had  begun 
to  fail  before  we  quitted  the  ice,  would,  in  a  week  or  two 
longer,  have  suffered  very  severely,  and  become  a  serious 
incumbrance,  instead  of  an  assistance,  to  our  party;  and  we 
were  of  opinion,  that  in  order  to  maintain  the  strength  of 
men  thus  employed,  for  several  weeks  together,  an  addition 

1  Narrative  of  an  Attempt  to  Reach  the  North  Pole,  pp.  145, 146,  410.  London : 
1828. 


228  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 


would  be  requisite  of  at  least  one-third  more  to  the  provisions 
we  daily  issued." 

10.  To  facilitate  inspection,  it  is  advisable  to  portion  off 
the  stock  of  provisions  for  each  week  in  separate  sacks,  and 
never  to  open  a  fresh  sack  till  the  previous  one  has  been 
emptied.  The  contents  of  the  sacks  for  the  latter  weeks 
should  be  increased  a  fifth-part  at  least  above  the  normal 
weight;  because  hunger  with  its  accompanying  loss  of  strength 
generally  grows  in  a  distressing  manner.  The  provisions 
should  consist  of  boiled  beef,  hard  bread,  extract  of  meat, 
chocolate,  grits,  pea-sausages,  sugar,  rice,  condensed  milk, 
and  coffee.  Tea  and  the  two  last  mentioned  articles  of  food 
have  an  indescribably  reviving  effect,  especially  in  the  morning, 
and  enable  the  party  to  make  long  forced  marches,  warding 
off  the  great  enemy  of  such  expeditions — thirst.  Pemmican 
and  fatty  substances,  however,  when  the  temperature  is  very 
low,  must  be  used  in  moderation,  inasmuch  as  they  tend  to 
promote  this  evil.  The  fact  that  we-  require  more  carbon  in 
our  food  in  winter  than  in  summer,  and  that  the  colder  a 
country  is,  the  more  of  this  element  should  be  found  in  its 
nourishment,  may,  indeed,  be  true  for  life  in  settled  abodes 
or  on  board  an  Arctic  ship,  but  does  not  hold  good  of  sledge 
journeys.  As  fresh  meat  affords,  under  all  circumstances,  the 
strongest  nourishment,  the  business  of  hunting  must  not  be 
left  to  chance.  In  order  to  diminish  the  weight,  all  preserved 
foods — with  the  exception  of  milk — are  turned  out  of  their 
tin  cases,  and  kept  in  small  bags.  Wherever  there  is  a  cer- 
tainty of  fining  drift-wood,  I  would  recommend,  as  Back  does, 
vermicelli  or  macaroni,  which  can  then  be  properly  prepared. 
Good  strong  tea  is  of  the  greatest  importance,  though  at 
first  we  set  little,,  store  by  it.  A  small  ration  of  rum  daily 
is  almost  indispensable  in  sledge  journeys,  especially  when  the 
temperature  is  very  low.  Franklin  (1819)  and  John  Ross 
(1829)  both  pronounce  in  favour  of  the  moderate  use  of  this 
spirit,  though  they  were  of  opinion  that  rum,  when  the  crews 
were  leading  an  inactive  life  on  boar4"ship,  promoted  scurvy. 
The  provisions  we  have*  specified  do  riot  altogether  correspond 
with  the  views  of  earlier  Polar  navigators.  Pachtussow  and 
Ziwolka  provided  themselves  in  their  sledge  journeys  (1835) 
with  the  following  stores  :— Salted  meat,  barley-meal,  grits, 


Hi.J       THE  EQUIPMENT  OF  A  SLEDGE  EXPEDITION.       229 

biscuit,  butter,  tea  and  sugar;  and  Parry's  provisions,  in  1827, 
consisted  of  pemmican,  wheat-meal,  sweet  cocoa-powder, 
biscuit,  and  300  Ibs.  of  concentrated  rum.1  Hayes  preferred 
dried  meat,  beef-soup,  and  potatoes  to  the  usual  pemmican. 

1 1 .  The  equipment  should  be  supplemented  by  the  follow- 
ing articles : — A  small  cask  of  strong  rum,  a  funnel,  an  india- 
rubber  bottle  to  measure  out  the  daily  allowance  of  spirit,  a 
snow-shovel,  and  a  stand  for  surveying  purposes.  The  sketch 
given  below  exhibits  a  sledge  laden  and  packed  for  a  long 
journey. 


THE  SLEDGE  WITH    ITS   LOAD. 


a,  Spirit-can. 

/,  Axe,  Thermometer. 

h,  Dog-sledge. 

z,  Cooking-machine. 

k,  Box  of  instruments. 

tn,  Tent  and  sleeping-bags. 


«  and  z,  Surveying-stand  and  tent-pole. 

o,  Sledge-sail. 

r,  Sacks  of  provisions. 

s,  India-rubber  bottle. 

t,  Funnel. 

u,  Shovel. 


12.  To  obviate  the  danger  of  being  cut  off  from  the  ship 
by  the  breaking  up  of  the  ice,  or  to  enable  the  party  to  push 
on  further,  boats  have  frequently  been  taken  in  sledge 
expeditions.  For  such  purposes,  boats  of  thin  metal  or  of  wood 
are  not  to  be  commended  ;  those  made  of  leather,  india- 
rubber,  or  waterproof  sailcloth,  are  preferable.  But  even  when 
their  wooden  frame-work  is  made  as  light  as  possible,  their 
weight  is  not  less  than  300  or  400  Ibs.  The  addition  of  this 
weight,  and  the  difficulty  of  lading  them,  are  so  much  felt  on 
such  journeys,  that  the  boat  is  usually  left  behind  at  a  little 
distance  from  the  ship,  as  was  the  case  in  Kane  and  Hayes* 
journeys  up  Smith's  Sound.  The  case  is  different,  however, 
in  journeys  which  have  to  be  carried  out  partly  on  the  ice  and 
1  Narrative,  &c.  Intro,  p.  xiv. 


230  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 


partly — and,  indeed,  chiefly — on  the  sea.  In  such  cases,  boats 
of  sufficient  size  to  carry  both  the  crews  and  the  baggage  are 
requisite.  The  whaje  boat  of  the  Norwegian  whalers,  carrying 
seven  or  eight  men,  is  best  adapted  for  this  purpose;  although, 
in  long  reaches  of  deep  snow,  they  have  their  inconveniences, 
as  almost  double  the  number  of  men  is  then  needed  to  drag 
them  along.  The  boats  in  such  expeditions  are  transported 
over  the  ice  when  the  snow  road  is  good,  or  only  passably 
good,  by  means  of  the  largest  of  the  sledges  we  have 
described ;  but,  if  the  snow  be  very  deep,  it  would  be  advis- 
able to  use  sledges  with  three  runners  underneath,  boarded 
over,  so  as  to  prevent  the  load  from  sinking  into  the 
snow.1 

13.  As  the  sledge  party  has  to  endure  for  several  weeks 
all  the  horrors  of  Arctic  weather,  the  article  of  clothing 
demands  special  care  and  consideration.  Abundance  of 
woollen  under-garments  and  light  furs  best  answer  this 
purpose.  The  woollen  under-garments  should  not  fit  too 
closely,  so  as  to  hinder  the  circulation  of  the  blood ;  and  the 
fur  coat  should  be  wide,  and  reach  half-way  down  the  leg. 
It  would  be  a  great  mistake  to  take  the  clothing  of  the 
northern  nomad  as  our  pattern.  Our  powers  of  enduring 
the  severities  of  Arctic  climate  are  inferior  to  theirs,  so  that 
we  cannot  attempt  to  imitate  their  hardihood  ;  but  our  own' 
industries  enable  us  to  surpass  all  their  resources.  During  the 
march,  a  long  garment  of  lamb's-wool,  to  which  a  belly-band 
is  sewn,  two  stout  linen  shirts,  one  or  two  pairs  of  woollen 
drawers,  strong  cloth  trousers,  a  pair  of  common  mittens,  and 
a  light  hood,  are  sufficient  for  all  temperatures.  Wind, 
especially  if  it  be  accompanied  with  drifting  snow,  necessi- 
tates fur  coats,  with  hoods  attached,  two  pairs  of  woollen 
gloves,  and  a  band  of  flannel  to  protect  the  nose,  buttoned 
on  to  the  hood.  Wind-guards,  made  of  strong  leather 
serving  to  protect  the  face  against  wind  and  frost,  must  not 
be  neglected.  Flannel  masks,  with  holes  cut  for  nose  and 
mouth,  are  of  little  use,  as  they  are  completely  frozen  in  a 
few  hours.  A  shawl  wrapped  round  the  mouth  is,  after  all, 
the  best  protection  against  cold  wind,  and  the  least  hindrance 
to  respiration.  As  the  shortest  beard  is  converted  at  once 

1  See  description  of  Parry's  Boats — Narrative,  &c.     Intro,  pp.  xi.-xii. 


in.]       THE  EQUIPMENT  OF  A  SLEDGE  EXPEDITION.      231 

into  a  glacier  by  the  freezing  of  the  breath,  it  is  necessary  to 
cut  it  off.  The  accompanying  figure  exhibits  the  Arctic  sledger 
prepared  for  the  eventualities  of  cold.  It  need  scarcely, 
however,  be  remarked,  that  no  absolutely  general  rules  can 
be  laid  down  in  the  matter  of  clothing,  which  depends  on  the 
different  capacities  of  resistance  in  individuals,  and  also  on 
the  variations  of  the  weather.  When  the  temperature  is  not 
more  than  2°  or  13°  below  zero  F.,  some  diminution  of  the 
garments  enumerated  above  may  safely  be  allowed.  Knitted 
woollen  hoods  are  sufficient  protection  for  the  head  in  almost 


THE  DRESS  OF  THE  ARCTIC  SLEDGER. 


all  cases.  Gloves,  not  intended  to  be  used  in  drawing  and  in 
handling  the  instruments,  should  be  made  of  lamb's-wool, 
and  the  fingers  lined  with  flannel.  The  stockings  also  should 
be  strengthened  with  flannel  at  the  heels  and  toes,  and 
should  be  kept  as  dry  as  possible;  because  wet  feet  are 
inevitably  frozen  when  the  cold  is  excessive.  Hence,  also, 
the  stockings  must  be  changed  at  night  and  dried,  by  being 
laid  on  the  chest  during  sleep. 

14.  In  the  matter  of  furs,  no  better  can  be  selected  than 
buffalo-skin,  or  wash-leather  made  of  bear's  hide ;  though  no 


232  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

covering  can  surpass  that  which  is  made  from  the  skins  of 
birds — Eider-ducks,  for  example — which  is  equally  good  for 
either  summer  or  winter,  during  the  march,  or  even  during 
sleep,  and  which  heed  be  exchanged  for  furs  only  when  the 
temperature  during  a  night-camping  falls  35°  to  58°  below  zero 
F.  Sheep-skin  and  wolf-skin  are  too  heavy ;  and  the  reindeer- 
skin,  though  so  light  and  warm,  is  not  suitable,  as  it  at  once 
loses  the  hair  when  exposed  to  damp,  and  does  not  last  a 
winter  with  constant  use ;  but  of  these,  the  best  are  those  of 
the  young  reindeer  killed  in  autumn.  Some  Arctic  travellers, 
in  the  absence  of  furs,  have  used  an  extra  covering  of  light 
sailcloth,  as  a  protection  against  the  drifting  snow,  which 
penetrates  the  clothes  and  stiffens  them.  We  have  tried  this 
experiment,  but  were  not  convinced  of  its  success.  In  Parry's 
second  expedition,  his  people  are  said  to  have  worn  their  furs 
next  to  their  bodies,  and  to  have  found  this  warmer  than  the 
wearing  of  woollens  next  the  skin ;  but  this  I  am  inclined  to 
regard  as  a  mistake.  When  furs  are  worn  during  the  march, 
their  congelation  and  consequent  increase  of  weight  are 
diminished  by  wearing  the  furs  sometimes  inside  and  some- 
times outside.  The  inhabitants  of  Lapland  and  Kamschatka 
constantly  wear  the  fur  outside ;  and  some  Eskimo  tribes 
wear  double  furs — one  turned  inside,  the  other  outside.  If 
cloth  clothes  are  worn,  their  surface  should  be  smooth,  so  as 
not  to  harbour  the  driving  snow  ;  and  all  buttons  should  be 
of  a  large  size,  as  frozen  fingers  find  it  easier  to  manage 
them. 

15.  The  covering  for  the  feet  of  a  sledge-party  should  be 
sailcloth  boots,  lined  with  flannel,  and  soled  with  stout  felt  ; 
and  it  is  not  advisable  to  strengthen  the  soles  by  plaiting 
them  with  string,  as  the  boot  thereby  loses  that  perfect 
pliability  which  is  indispensable  to  preserve  the  foot  from 
the  danger  of  frost-bite.  Hence  also  any  covering  of  india- 
rubber  is  objectionable.  Leather  boots  must  not  be  used  in 
sledging ;  because  they  become  utterly  unpliable  at  a  low 
temperature,  and  make  frost-bites  inevitable ;  and  when 
once  put  on  they  cannot  be  pulled  off  without  being  cut 
to  pieces.  All  boots  should  be  so  large  and  their  legs  so 
wide,  that  they  may  be  put  on  conveniently  over  the 
trousers ;  and  sailcloth  boots  especially,  because  of  their 


III.]       THE  EQUIPMENT  OF  A  SLEDGE  EXPEDITION.      233 

shrinking  from  frost,  should  be  so  wide,  that  they  can  be 
put  on  easily  over  three  pairs  of  strong  woollen  stockings. 
The  Eskimo,  the  inhabitants  of  Lapland,  Kamschatka,  and 
other  northern  nomad  tribes,  wear  the  dried  grass  of  Cyper- 
acites  as  their  foot-coverings;  and  this  might  be  recom- 
mended, if  it  did  not  also  involve  the  use  of  skin-coverings 
for  the  feet,  in  which  no  European  can  make  long  marches, 
without  their  being  inflamed.  Because,  in  the  Arctic  regions, 
the  condensation  of  moisture  in  the  shape  of  ice  is  an  enemy 
constantly  to  be  guarded  against,  all  stuffs  are  to  be  avoided 
which  tend  to  harbour  moisture,  especially  the  linings  of 
coats,  pockets,  and  so  forth,  made  of  cotton  instead  of  pure 
wool.  India-rubber  garments  must  never  be  used,  as  they 
prevent  evaporation  from  the  body. 

1 6.  If  dogs  are  used  to  draw  the  large  sledges  along  with 
men,  they  ought  to  be  harnessed  in  the  way  which  the  sketch 
on  a  preceding  page  represents.  The  dog-sledge  should  be 
laid  across  the  hinder  part  of  the  principal  sledge,  and  made 
fast  to  it.  If,  however,  dogs  alone  are  employed,  and  at  walk- 
ing-pace, they  are  harnessed  in  pairs,  one  pair  behind  the 
other.  Each  dog  should  draw  by  a  single  trace,  as  we  can 
only  thus  avoid  the  constant  entangling  of  the  rope-traces. 
If  more  than  four  dogs  be  employed,  they  cannot  well  go 
in  pairs  one  before  the  other,  but  must  be  harnessed  to  the 
sledge  in  a  row,  side  by  side,  and  the  traces  must  be  long, 
so  as  to  enable  the  most  powerful  and  best-trained  dogs, 
which  are  placed  in  the  middle,  to  be  somewhat  in  advance  of 
the  others.  The  dogs  should  be  selected  according  to  the 
special  purpose  for  which  they  are  to  be  employed ;  for} 
while  an  Eskimo  dog  will  run,  but  shirks  the  effort  of  draw- 
ing heavy  loads,  a  Newfoundland  submits  to  its  load,  but 
goes  at  a  foot's-pace.  In  the  Hudson's  Bay  territory  a  cross 
between  a  wolf  and  a  dog  is  regarded  as  the  best  animal 
for  draught,  because  it  surpasses  the  dog  proper  in  strength 
and  courage.  Newfoundlands  of  pure  breed  are,  on  the  whole, 
most  to  be  recommended,  and  next  to  them,  the  Eskimo  dog, 
which  has  a  good  deal  of  the  character  of  the  wolf,  though  he 
is  difficult  to  hold.  These  dogs,  too,  although  they  are  in- 
describably thievish,  voracious,  and  ill-tempered,  in  consequence 
of  their  harsh  treatment  and  bad  feeding,  have  this  further 
17 


234  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  in. 


distinguishing  quality,  that  they  will  stick  to  a  retreating 
bear  with  wonderful  pertinacity  till  the  hunter  comes  up  to 
kill  it.  European  dogs  are  only  to  be  taken  when  an  expedi- 
tion has  not  the  opportunity  of  procuring  dogs  of  the  kinds 
we  have  mentioned  ;  but,  if  they  be  employed,  they  should 
be  strong  .and  hardy,  with  long  hair  and  thick  coat.  The 
purity  of  their  breed  is  of  less  consequence  than  their  being 
good-tempered,  as  fights  between  large  dogs  end  in  the 
destruction  of  the  weaker.  The  Ostjaks,  in  the  neighbour- 
hood of  Obdorsk,  are  the  nomad  tribes  nearest  Europe  who 
use  dogs  for  sledges  ;  and  their  breed  of  dogs  is  far  superior 
to  any  other,  either  in  Lapland  or  Northern  Russia.  The 
dogs  of  Russia  in  Europe  were  employed  in  the  expedition 


TOROSSY    IN    HARNESS. 


(1839)  of  Ziwolka  and  Mojsejew  to  Novaya  Zemlya ;  but 
it  does  not  appear  that  they  answered  the  expectations 
which  had  been  formed.  In  sledge-expeditions  the  dogs  are 
allowed  to  sleep  in  the  open  air ;  but  they  must  be  fastened  to 
stakes,  lest  the  scenting  some  animal  should  tempt  them 
to  run  off.  We  ourselves,  however,  allowed  a  small  tent, 
weighing  little,  for  the  few  dogs  which  accompanied  us.  Dogs 
whose  paws  have  not  been  early  hardened  by  long  marches 
on  the  ice,  easily  hurt  their  feet,  which  do  not  heal  during 
the  journey  ;  and  wounds  can  only  be  prevented  from  getting^ 
worse  by  *a  daily  application  of  collodion  and  brandy,  and 
by  a  protection  of  flannel ;  and  this  is  the  treatment  we 
pursued  to  Jubinal  in  the  journey  we  are  about  to  describe. 
Whenever  a  dog  is  exhausted  by  dragging,  it  is  generally 
blooded  in  the  tail  or  ear  after  the  fashion  followed  by  the 
Siberian  tribes. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  FIRST    SLEDGE  JOURNEY 

I.  FROM  the  preceding  remarks  on  the  equipment  of  a  sledge, 
the  reader  will,  perhaps,  have  gained  a  pretty  clear  notion 
of  the  procedure  by  which  we  are  enabled  to  travel  for  weeks 
in  Arctic  wastes.  This  description  will  have  shown  him  the 
various  and  manifold  contingencies  against  which  a  leader  has 
to  provide,  if  he  is  to  conduct  an  expedition  safely  and 
successfully,  especially  if  he  commands  a  body  of  men,  who 
are  neither  so  careful  nor  so  observant  as  those  who  ac- 
companied me  in  the  sledge  journeys  I  am  about  to  describe. 

2.  I  now  pass  to  the  first  of  these,  the  object  of  which  was 
to  determine  the  position  and  general  relations  of  the  new 
Land,  which  still  remained  a  mystery  to  us,  to  reconnoitre 
a  route  for  its  exploration  towards  the  north,  and  to  ascertain 
what  we  could  of  the  character  of  the  intervening  regions. 
I  regarded  the  ascent  of  the  high  mountain — Cape  TegetthofT 
— which  we  had  seen  before  us  for  months,  as  the  preliminary 
step  towards  the  attainment  of  these  ends.  Its  great  distance 
from  the  ship  had  rendered  abortive  all  the  attempts  to  reach 
it  which  had  been  made  at  the  end  of  last  autumn.  With 
the  beginning  of  March  (1874)  the  sledging  was  now  to  com- 
mence in  reality.  Though  the  sun  had  returned  on  the 
24th  of  February,  it  was  seldom  visible  in  the  remaining 
days  of  that  month ;  a  heavy  water-sky  overspread  the 
southern  heavens,  and  the  only  cheerful  precursors  of  spring 
were  the  birds  which  once  more  appeared  in  our  neighbour- 
hood. The  snow  had  been  distressingly  soft,  but  the  north- 
east winds  which  prevailed  during  the  first  days  of  March 
hardened  it.  When  these  winds  fell,  the  temperature  also 


236  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

fell,  and  although  the  beginning  of  March  is  regarded  as 
a  time  little  favourable  for  sledge  travelling  on  account  of 
the  excessive  cold,  our  impatience  for  action  overcame  all 
doubts  and  fears,  and  on  the  Qth  one  of  our  larger  sledges 
stood  ready,  laden  and  packed  for  an  expedition,  equipped 
for  a  week.  It  carried  an  extra  quantity  of  provisions, 
which  were  intended  to  form  depdts.  From  the  general  store 
we  took  39  Ibs.  of  hard  bread,  5  Ibs.  of  pemmican,  16  Ibs. 
of  boiled  beef,  6|  Ibs.  of  lard,  I  Ib.  of  pea-sausage,  ^  Ib.  of 
salt  and  pepper,  6  Ibs.  of  rice,  2  Ibs.  of  grits,  5  Ibs.  of 
chocolate,  5  gallons  of  rum,  I  Ib.  of  extract  of  meat,  2  Ibs. 
of  condensed  milk,  and  8  gallons  of  alcohol.  The  rest  of 
the  baggage  consisted  of  such  articles  as  we  have  described 
above.  We  had  besides  3  breech-loaders  and  100  cartridges, 
of  which  40  were  fired  away. 

3.  I  selected  for  my  party  six  men  and  three  dogs,  Gillis, 
Torossy  and  Sumbu.     As  I   reserved  the  picked  men  of  our 
crew  for  the  contemplated  longer  journey  towards  the  north, 
some  of  the  above  were  not  altogether  adequate  to  the  work. 
My  two  Tyrolese,  however,  Haller  and  Klotz,  possessed  great 
endurance,  Lukinovich  and  Cattarinch  in  a  lesser  degree  ;  as 
for  Pospischill  and  Lettis,  they  would  have  done  credit  to 
FalstafTs  corps.     As  Pospischill  suffered  from  lung  disease, 
Lukinovich  from  palpitation  of  the  heart,  Haller  from  chronic 
rheumatism,  and  Lettis  from  a  tendency  to  bronchial  catarrh, 
it   may  be   inferred   how   necessity   alone   enabled  them    to 
do  what  they  did,  when  the  temperature  fell  lower  than  we 
expected. 

4.  On  the  morning  of  the  loth  of  March  we  left  the  ship, 
and  the  "Flag  of  the  sledge  journeys,"  which  had  hung  for 
so  long   a  time  over  my  berth,  now   fluttered  in  the  fresh 
breeze  which  blew  from  the  north-west.     So  much  had  this 
"at  last,"  excited  me,  that  I  could  not  sleep  a  wink,  and  those 
who  were  starting  on  the  expedition  as  well  as  those  who 
remained  behind  were  as  much  agitated,  as  if  the  conquest  of 
Peru  or  Ophir  were  contemplated,  and  not  the  exploration  of 
lands  buried  under  snow  and  ice.     With  indescribable  joy  we 
began  the  mechanical  drudgery  of  dragging  the  sledge,  each 
of  us   at   first   wearing  a    mask,    like   the    members   of   the 
"  Vehmgericht,"  until  we  became  habituated  to  the  withering 


iv.]  THE  FIRST  SLEDGE  JOURNEY.  237 

effects  of  the  wind.  As  we  moved  along  the  level  surface 
of  the  land  ice  of  the  preceding  autumn,  after  forcing  our  way 
through  the  hummocky  ice,  which  had  formed  itself  on  the 
north  of  the  ship,  we  saw  behind  us  some  black  spots 
approaching  at  full  speed.  These  were  the  dogs  we  had 
left  behind,  which  insisted  on  travelling  with  us,  and  much 
craft  and  force,  supplemented  by  the  logic  of  a  few  shots, 
were  needed  to  force  them  to  return  to  the  ship.  My  com- 
panions interpreted  the  conduct  of  the  dogs  refusing  to  remain 
with  the  ship  as  a  sign  foreboding  the  death  of  our  engineer. 
As  the  lading  of  our  sledge  amounted  to  about  6  or  7  cwts. 
and  the  snow  was  favourable  for  sledging,  we  were  able  to 
advance  at  the  unusual  rate  of  100  paces  in  a  minute,  and  in 
two  hours  we  passed  the  south-west  Cape  of  Wilczek  Island. 
Close  to  this  Cape  we  saw  an  iceberg  which  had  fallen  on 
the  ice  and  crushed  it  all  round,  and  sheltering  ourselves  from 
the  wind  under  the  lee  of  another,  we  took  our  mid-day  rest 
with  the  thermometer  at  -  15°  F.  As  the  sun  at  noon  was 
so  little  above  the  horizon  that  we  got  uncertain  results  for  the 
determination  of  the  latitude,  I  preferred  during  this  journey 
to  begin  the  surveying  and,  at  the  same  time,  the  determina- 
tion of  the  localities  of  Franz-j£>sef  Land,  by  a  triangulation 
of  elevated  points,  to  which  the  measurement  of  a  base  was 
afterwards  to  be  added.  Hence  the  ascent  of  high  mountains 
formed  part  of  our  programme. 

5.  We  continued  our  march  till  the  ship  disappeared  from 
our  eyes,  and  the  route  now  lost  its  level  character  and 
assumed  the  appearance  of  a  very  chaos  of  ice.  In  the 
evening  we  reached  a  high  rocky  promontory  of  Wilczek 
Island,  near  which  rose  some  stranded  icebergs,  and  against 
which  the  ice-sheet  of  the  sea,  impelled  by  the  waves,  was 
dashed  and  broken.  Close  in  shore  the  ice  was  in  violent 
motion,  and  as  we  passed  over  the  "  ice-foot,"  to  the  amaze- 
ment of  all,  three  of  our  men  fell  into  a  fissure.  All  through 
the  night  we  heard  in  our  tent,  which  we  erected  on  the  land, 
the  cracking  and  crashing  sounds  emitted  by  the  ice.  Next 
day — March  nth — making  a  very  early  start,  the  ther- 
mometer at  -  14°  F.,  we  saw  a  water-sky  to  the  south,  and, 
after  ascending  a  height,  close  before  us  lay  the  sea,  covered 
with  young  ice.  Heavy  mists  were  ascending  from  fissures, 


238  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

and  the  level  surface  of  the  young  ice  glowed  with  the  colours 
of  the  morning.  Immediately  under  the  coast  of  the  island 
lay  a  narrow  band  of  piled-up  ice,  with  traces  of  recent 
pressures,  and  thinking  that  the  interior  was  impassable  to 
a  laden  sledge,  we  began  our  toilsome  march  along  its  rocky 
coasts. 

6.  We  were  in  no  mood  to  observe  the  picturesque  character 
of  our  route,  for  our  labours  in  dragging  the  sledge  over  the 
hummocky  ice  were  excessive.  We  had  frequently  to  unload 
the  sledge  or  dig  away  an  obstacle  which  could  not  be  evaded. 
The  conduct  of  the  dogs  was  not  quite  faultless  ;  and  as  for 
my  companions,  if  one  of  them  turned  round,  or  if  a  bird 
flew  past,  this  was  enough  to  make  the  rest  pause  in  their 
pulling,  with  the  ready  excuse  of  surprise  at  the  circumstance. 
If  in  such  cases  Klotz  failed  to  exert  his  strength,  the  sledge 
at  once  came  to  a  standstill.  We  pressed  on  through  icebergs 
on  each  side  of  us,  shattered  by  the  frost,  and  amid  a  constant 
noise  of  cracking  and  splitting  prpduced  by  the  increasing 
cold.  At  length,  after  several  hours,  we  came  out  on  an 
open  level  and  crossed  the  gentle  slope  of  a  snow-covered  spit 
of  land.  The  rugged  mountainous  front  of  Hall  Island, 
and  the  long  glacier  walls  of  M'Clintock  Island,  now  rose 
before  us.  Our  course  lay  clearly  marked  out :  it  ran  in  a 
north-westerly  direction  over  a  snow-covered  level  of  old  ice 
towards  Cape  Tegetthoff.  Soon,  however,  the  mist  began  to 
rise  and  floated  over  the  wide  expanse  of  ice,  and  so  obscured 
every  object  that  we  were  able  to  continue  our  journey  in  the 
twilight  only  by  means  of  the  compass.  We  determined  our 
course  by  the  aid  of  small  hummocks  of  ice,  which  rose  above 
the  general  level  surface,  but  so  great  was  the  difficulty  of 
keeping  a  definite  line  in  the  mist,  that  we  were  compelled  to 
halt  every  four  hundred  paces,  and  correct  our  route  by  the 
larger  compass,  which  often  showed  that  we  had  deviated  20° 
to  40°  in  azimuth  from  the  true  line,  and  in  some  cases  the 
•error  amounted  to  even  90°.  To  add  to  all  this,  snow  began 
to  fall,  so  that  we  were  almost  blinded,  and  hence  it  was  that 
a  bear  for  some  time  followed  our  footsteps,  unseen  by  any  of 
the  party.  When  we  first  sighted  him,  though  he  was  at  a 
little  distance  off,  he  looked  enormously  large  in  the  mist 
We  quickly  seized  our  rifles,  and  one  of  our  men  firing 


iv.]  THE  FIRST  SLEDGE  JOURNEY.  239 

precipitately,  the  bear  disappeared,  leaving  no  track  of  blood 
to  show  whether  it  had  been  wounded.  But  bears,  even  when 
severely  wounded,  often  leave  no  such  trace  ;  hence  doubtless 
the  origin  of  the  assertion,  that  a  wounded  bear  can  dress  its 
own  wound,  using  its  paw  to  apply  snow  to  the  injured 
part. 

7.  It  was  our  practice  in  this,  as  well  as  in  the  following 
expeditions,  to  rest  at  noon  for  an  hour  or  two,  and  putting 
up  the  tent  take  a  meal  of  hot  boiled  beef.  But  the  inferiority 
of  an  untrained  to  a  well-trained  sledge  party  was  seen  even 
in  such  operations.  Much  time  was  wasted  ;  in  like  manner 
and  from  the  same  cause,  the  coffee-making  in  the  morning, 
the  preparation  for  the  march,  the  taking  down  of  the  tent, 
the  loading  of  the  sledge,  occupied  my  party  for  hours,  and 
the  smallest  snow-drifting  sufficed  to  blow  away  all  their 
moral  force.  As  we  left  the  tent,  the  bear  stood  again  before 
us,  but  disappeared  as  suddenly  when  we  seized  our  rifles. 
In  the  course  of  a  few  hours  we  passed  some  icebergs  shaped 
like  huge  tables,  and  when  the  wind  rose  and  lifted  up  the 
mist  for  a  few  moments,  we  saw  the  rocky  heights  of  Cape 
Tegetthoff  towering  above  us  at  no  great  distance.  The 
snow  began  to  drive  directly  in  our  faces,  and  meanwhile  the 
bear  had  followed  our  steps,  often  hidden  from  our  sight 
by  the  vehement  gusts  of  snow,  sometimes  on  our  flank, 
sometimes  in  our  rqar,  keeping  at  about  200  paces  distance 
from  us.  By  feigning  unconcern  we  hoped  to  stimulate  his 
courage  to  attack  us,  reckoning  on  converting  him  into  food. 
Suddenly,  however,  he  ran  towards  us,  and  our  apparent 
indifference  disappeared.  In  a  moment  we  stood  ready  to 
receive  him ;  the  sledge  was  drawn  across  the  line  of  his 
advance,  and  each  casting  off  his  drag-rope,  knelt  and  aimed 
over  the  sledge.  The  directions  were  to  aim  at  the  lower  part 
of  the  skull,  and  to  fire  only  when  he  was  quite  close  to  us. 
The  dogs  were  moved  to  the  further  side  of  the  sledge,  and 
covered  with  its  sail.  Of  the  other  four  men,  two  held  the 
dogs,  a  third  laid  hold  of  a  revolver,  and  the  fourth  provided 
himself  with  some  cartridges  ready  for  contingencies.  After 
the  completion  of  these  preparations,  no  one  either  moved  or 
spoke.  The  bear  meanwhile,  moved  steadily  towards  us, 
stopping  for  a  moment  at  the  spot  where  a  piece  of  bread  had 


240  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

intentionally  been  placed.  Just  as  he  stopped  to  examine  it, 
three  shots  in  rapid  succession  went  off^  and  the  bear,  hit  in 
the  head  and  chest,  lay  dead  on  the  ground.  The  dogs,  being 
let  loose,  rushed  on  their  fallen  foe  and  began  to  tear  his 
shaggy  skin.  While  we  were  cutting  the  bear  up,  they  sat 
down  and  watched  us,  occasionally  dipping  their  tongues  in 
the  warm  red  blood  and  snapping  up  the  morsels  which  were 
thrown  to  them.  The  bear  we  had  shot  was  a  female,  six 
feet  in  length  ;  and  after  cutting  off  the  tongue  and  the  best 
portions  for  meat,  we  continued  our  march  in  the  teeth  of 
the  driving  snow.  One  of  our  people  had  cut  his  finger 
badly  in  dressing  the  bear,  and  as  the  application  of  chloride 
of  iron  did  not  suffice  to  stop  the  violent  bleeding,  we  were 
compelled  to  halt  and  erect  our  tent  about  six  o'clock  in  the 
evening. 

8.  When  we  set  out  again  on  the  morning  of  the  I2th 
(the  thermometer  marking  —  26°  F.)  all  round  us  was  a  red 
undulating  waste,  and  the  driving  gusts  of  snow,  which  hid 
from  our  view  the  nearest  rocky  heights,  pricked  us  as  if  with 
countless  sharp-pointed  darts.  Such  drifting  snow,  although 
it  greatly  impedes  travelling,  cannot  be  compared  with  the 
tremendous  snow-storms  I  had  experienced  in  Greenland. 
The  same  precursory  signs  were,  however,  common  to  both — 
extraordinary  refractions,  brilliant  auroras,  perfect  calms,  and 
a  dull  close  atmosphere.  In  taking  down  the  tent,  which  was 
covered  with  wreaths  of  snow,  every  article  which  fell  in  it 
was  at  once  buried  under  its  drifting  waves.  Of  all  the  tests 
of  endurance  in  Arctic  journeys  none  exceeds  that  of  con- 
tinuing the  march  amid  driving  snow  at  a  low  temperature. 
Some  of  my  company  who  had  not  been  accustomed  to  walk 
in  such  tremendous  weather,  in  attempting  to  button  on  their 
wind-screens  and  nose-bands  and  fasten  up  their  coats  after  we 
had  left  the  tent,  at  once  had  their  fingers  frozen.  Our  sail- 
cloth boots  were  as  hard  as  stone,  and  every  one  took  to 
stamping  to  preserve  his  feet  from  frost-bite.  Under  such 
circumstances  the  sledge  is  not  packed  with  that  precision 
which  is  the  only  preservative  against  the  loss  of  the  various 
articles  of  its  contents.  To  watch  against  this  contingency 
is  the  special  business  .of  the  man  who  pushes  the  sledge  from 
behind.  Hurry  and  confusion  were  visible  in  the  bag  of 


-  iv.J  THE  FIRST  SLEDGE  JOURNEY.  241 

provisions  being  left  open.  At  last  everything  was  ready: 
the  march  began,  men  and  dogs,  dragging  the  sledge  along, 
all  coated  with  snow  and  entirely  covered  except  the  eyes. 
In  a  momentary  lull  of  the  wind,  we  discovered  that  our 
march  the  day  before  had  led  us  far  too  much  to  the  south, 
and  Cape  Tegetthoff  now  lay  before  us  directly  north. 
Thither  we  now  directed  our  steps,  and  as  the  wind  still  came 
from  the  north-west,  we  struck  our  sledge  sail.  As  a  con- 
sequence of  this  marching  against  the  wind,  which  is  most 
severely  felt  by  the  leaders  of  the  team,  all,  even  Klotz,  had 
their  noses  frost-bitten.  We  had  much  difficulty  in  persuading 
him  to  rub  his  with  snow,  urging  that  his  nose  did  not  belong 
to  himself  alone,  but  that  seven  noses  and  fourteen  feet  were 
under  the  general  supervision  of  the  leader,  and  that  each 
had  a  share  in  this  general  property. 

9.  As  we  came  under  the  land,  the  violence  of  the  snow- 
drifting  somewhat  abated,  and  in  about  two  hours  a  calm 
set  in.     Close  before  us  lay  the  plateau  of  Cape  Tegetthoff, 
with  its  steep  precipitous  sides.     From  its  summit  a  line  of 
basalt   rocks    descended    towards   the   east,    ending   in   two 
columns,  each  about   two  hundred  feet  high.     We  reached 
them  just  before  noon,  and  the  weather  being  propitious  we 
determined  the  latitude  by  observation  and  found  it  to  be 
80°  6"  N.L.     The  force  of  the  tide  not  being  able  to  raise 
or  burst  the  bay-ice,  the  thaw-water  of  the  spring  collects 
itself   on    the    coast-edge  in  small  lakes.     Close  under   one 
of  these  towers  of  dark-coloured  basalt,  we  set  up  our  tent ; 
and  while  our   cook  was  preparing  our  dinner  of  bear's  flesh 
we  lay  in  the  sun  under  the  rocks  in  order  to  dry  our  clothes, 
which  were  coated  all  over  with  ice. 

10.  About  one  o'clock  I  set  off  with  the  Tyrolese  to  the 
plateau    of   Cape   Tegetthoff.     Those  who  remained  behind 
spent  their  time  in  rubbing  their  feet  with  snow.     Lettis  had 
reserved  for  us  the  unpleasant  surprise  that  his  feet  had  been 
frost-bitten  for  three  hours,  and  that  he  had  lost  all  feeling  in 
them.     We  marched  for  an  hour  on  the  snow,  which  lay  in 
tender  azure-blue  shadow  under  the  long  line  of  basalt  rocks, 
and  after  climbing  for  another  hour  over  rosy-coloured  masses 
of   snow   lying   between  crystallized  rocks,  we  reached   the 
highest  point  of  the  undulating  plateau.     No  ascent  could  be 


242  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

.more  interesting,  made,  as  it  was,  in  a  country  so  utterly 
unknown.  Haller  and  Klotz  were  born  mountaineers,  and 
during  my  surveys  in  Tyrol  I  had  made  a  hundred  ascents  of 
mountains  of  10,000  feet,  without  the  tension  of  expectation 
I  now  experienced,  as  I  mounted  this  summit.  The  ascent 
was  not  without  difficulty,  and  it  taxed  the  extraordinary 
dexterity  of  the  two  Tyrolese  to  climb  up  steep  icy  precipices 
in  their  sail-cloth  boots.  It  was  about  three  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon  when  we  reached  the  summit ;  the  temperature  had 
fallen  to  —  30°  F.  (in  the  tent  the  thermometer  at  the  same 
time  marked  —  24°  F.  and  in  the  ship  —  20°  F.).  By  a  baro- 
metrical measurement  we  found  the  height  to  be  2,600  feet. 
Contrary  to  expectation  the  view  from  the  top  proved  to  be 


CAPE   TEGETTHOFF. 


limited.  In  a  northerly  direction,  the  atmosphere,  laden 
with  innumerable  ice  crystals,  possessed  so  little  trans- 
parency that  Cape  Berghaus,  at  no  distance  off,  appeared 
to  be  covered  with  a  thick  veil,  and  all  distant  objects  were 
enveloped  in  a  dense  mist.  Fogs  lay  over  the  interior  to  the 
west,  and  banks  of  reddish  vapour  covered  the  icy  ocean  to 
the  south.  Some  narrow  strips  of  open  water  sparkled  in  the 
sun.  After  making  a  sketch  of  all  that  could  be  distinctly 
seen,  and  determining  the  bearings  of  some  points,  we  re- 
turned to  the  tent.  Here  we  found  Lettis  and  Cattarinch 
engaged  in  rubbing  with  snow  the  hands  of  Lukinovich, 
which  had  been  frost-bitten,  while  he  was  occupied  in  rubbing 
the  feet  of  Lettis. 


iv.]  THE  FIRST  SLEDGE  JOURNEY.  243 

11.  Nothing  except  the  wind  makes  men  so  sensitive  to 
cold  as  the  want  of  exercise.     The  fall  of  the  temperature 
had  been  felt  far  more  by  those  who  remained  behind,  than 
by  ourselves.     Even  the  wonderful  beauty  of  the  snow-clad 
summit   bathed    in   rosy  light  failed  to  modify  their  severe 
judgment  of  Franz-Josef  Land.     Instead  of  greeting  us  with 
supper  ready  at  the  appointed  hour,  which  he  ought  to  have 
prepared  without  the  use  of  spirit,  the  bewildered  cook  was 
vainly  endeavouring'  to  roast  bear's  flesh  over  smoky  chips 
and  sticks,  and  we  got  our  supper  only  after  I  had  served  out 
a  bottle  of  alcohol.     We  then  went  to  rest  in  the  common 
sleeping  bag,  but  soon  began  to  shake  with  cold,  which  threw 
Pospischill,  who  took  oil  twice  a  day  for  lung-disease,  into  a 
fever.     When  I  left  the  tent  to  look  at  the  thermometers,  the 
mercury  in  one  had  gone  down  into  the  bulb  and  was  frozen, 
and  the  spirits  of  wine  in  the  other  showed  41°  below  zero 
(C.).     Some  hot  grog,  for  which  a  whole  bottle  of  strong  rum 
was  used,  put  us  all  right,  raising  the  temperature  of   our 
bodies  by  one  or  two  degrees.     After  this  refreshment  we  all 
fell  into  a  deep  sleep,  which  was  incommoded  only  by  the 
increasing  dampness  of  our  clothes. 

12.  We  started  again  about  six  o'clock  on  the  morning  of 
March  13.     The  sun  had  not  risen,  the  spirit  of  wijie  thermo- 
meter indicated  nearly  44°  (C.)  below  zero,  and  a  piercingly 
cold  breeze  met  us  from  the  land. '  Even  on  board  the  ship  the 
temperature  at  the  same  time  marked  37°  (C.)  below  zero,  a 
difference  to  be  ascribed  to  the  influence  of  the  land  in  lower- 
ing the  temperature.     In  Greenland  we  observed  still  greater 
deviations  of  this  nature,  which  seem  to  show  that  climatical 
influences  are  subject  to  great  variations,  even  in  places  which 
are  in  close  proximity.     Cape  Berghaus  was  our  goal.     From 
its  summit  a  general  view  of  the  distribution  of  the  land  under 
80°  N.  lat.  was  reasonably  to  be  expected.     Long  before  the 
rise  of  the  sun,  the  hard  snowy  plains  were  tinted  with  a  pale 
green  reflected  light,  and  the  icebergs  wore  a  dull  silvery  hue, 
while  their  outlines  constantly  changed  and  undulated.     Our 
road  was  formed  from  millions  of  glittering  snow  crystals,  so 
hard  that  the  sledge  glided  over  them  with  difficulty  and  with 
a  creaking  noise,  and  after  three  hours,  the  exertion  of  dragging 
had  so  exhausted  us  that  we  determined  to  unload  the  sledge, 


244  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

and,  after  melting  some  snow,  to  wet  its  runners  with  water. 
A  layer  of  ice  was  immediately  formed  on  them,  which  greatly 
facilitated  the  labour  of  dragging,  till  it  was  rubbed  off.  A 
broad  inlet  surrounded  by  picturesque  mountains — Nordens- 
kjold  Fiord — had  opened  out  on  our  left,  and  as  a  large 
glacier  formed  the  background  of  this  fiord,  we  took  a  wester- 
ly direction  in  order  to  study  the  ice-formation.  The  heights 
surrounding  this  fiord  seemed  equally  as  well  fitted  as  Cape 
Berghaus  for  the  object  we  had  in  view.  The  further  we 
penetrated  into  it,  the  deeper  became  the  layer  of  fine  powdery 
snow  which  the  wind  had  deposited  in  this  hollow.  At  noon 


MELTING  SNOW  DURING  A  HALT  NEAR  CAPE  BERGHAUS. 

we   reached   the  high   precipitous   termination    of    Sonklar- 
Glacier,  and  pitched  our  tent  by  an  iceberg. 

13.  In  the  afternoon,  accompanied  by  the  Tyrolese,  I 
ascended  a  mountain — Cape  Littrow — whose  height,  by 
means  of  an  aneroid  barometer,  we  ascertained  to  be  2,500 
feet.  From  its  summit  we  had  a  view  of  the  mountains  of 
Hall  Island,  and  of  the  islands  which  lay  to  the  east.  Not  a 
breath  of  wind  was  stirring,  and  the  atmosphere  was  clearer 
than  usual,  so  that,  without  suffering  in  the  least  degree  from 
cold,  I  could  work  for  three  hours,  first  in  sketching  our  sur- 
roundings and  then  in  taking  observations.  From  south-west 


iv.]  THE  FIRST  SLEDGE  JOURNEY.  245 

to  north-east  the  peaks  of  distant  mountains  rose  above  the 
summits  of  those  in  the  foreground.  This  view,  while  it  assured 
us  that  the  land  we  had  named  after  our  monarch  must  be  of 
great  extent,  stimulated  our  impatience  to  know  its  extent, 
and  the  nature  and  relation  of  its  constituent  parts.  The 
Wiillersdorf  Mountains  were  the  extreme  limits  of  what 
could  be  known  for  the  present,  and  their  three  peaks  glowed 
in  the  setting  sun  above  the  dark  edges  of  the  terraces  of  the 
Sonklar-Glacier,  whose  broad  terminal  front  over-hung  the 
frozen  bay  of  Nordenskjold  Fiord.  It  was  eight  o'clock  in  the 
evening  when  we  returned  to  our  tent,  not,  however,  before  we 
had  made  suitable  preparations  for  the  observation  of  the 
movement  of  the  glacier.  Sumbu  and  Torossy  were  our 
companions ;  but  we  had  to  tie  them  with  a  rope  both  in 
going  up  and  coming  down,  and  we  ourselves  only  mastered 
the  great  steepness  of  the  cone  of  the  mountain  by  steps 
which  Klotz,  who  went  on  before,  hewed  with  incomparable 
dexterity  and  precision  in  the  ice.  During  the  night  the 
temperature  fell  to  46°  below  zero  (C.)  (—47°  F.  in  the  ship), 
and  I  do  not  believe  that  we  could  have  passed  through  it 
without  the  help  of  grog.  We  drank  it  as  we  lay  close  to- 
gether muffled  up  in  our  sleeping  bag.  It  was  boiling  hot, 
and  so  strong,  that  under  other  circumstances  it  must  have 
made  us  incapable  of  work,  yet  in  spite  of  the  grog,  we 
suffered  much  all  through  the  night  from  cold  and  our  frozen 
clothes. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  COLD. 

I.  THE  coldest  day  we  had  during  this  expedition  was  the 
I4th  of  March.  By  six  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  that  day 
the  Tyrolese  and  I  stood  on  the  summit  of  the  precipitous 
face  of  the  Sonklar-Glacier.  The  others  remained  behind  to 
clear  the  tent  of  snow,  and  to  bury  a  small  depot  of  provisions 
in  an  iceberg  which  was 'close  at  hand.  The  sun  had  not  yet 
risen,  though  a  golden  gleam  behind  the  glaciers  of  Salm 
Island  indicated  his  near  approach.  At  last  the  sun  himself 
appeared,  blood-red,  glowing  with  indistinct  outline  through 
the  mists,  and  surrounded  with  parhelia,  which  generally  occur 
when  the  cold  is  great.  The  tops  of  the  high  snowy  moun- 
tains were  first  touched  with  rosy  light,  which  gradually 
descended  and  spread  over  the  icy  plains,  and  the  sun  like  a 
ball  of  fire  shone  at  length  clearly  through  the  frosty  mist, 
and  everything  around  seemed  on  fire.  As  the  sun  even  at 
noon  was  but  a  few  degrees  above  the  horizon,  this  wonderful 
colouring  lasted  throughout  the  day,  and  the  mountains, 
whose  steepest  sides  were  covered  with  a  frosty  efflorescence, 
shone  like  glass  in  this  radiant  light.  The  alcohol  thermo- 
meter soon  after  we  came  on  the  glacier  fell  to  59°  i'  (F.) 
below  zero,1  and  a  light  breeze  blowing  from  the  interior, 
which  would  have  been  pleasant  enough  on  a  March  day  in 
Europe,  exposed  me,  while  engaged  in  the  indispensable  work 
of  drawing  and  measuring,  to  such  danger,  that  though  I 
worked  under  the  shelter  of  my  Tyrolese  companions  as  a 
protection  against  the  cold,  I  was  constantly  compelled  to  rub 

1  This  was  the  maximum  of  cold  I  observed  during  my  three  Polar  expeditions. 

1 


CHAP.  V.] 


THE  COLD. 


247 


my  stiffened  and  benumbed  hands  with  snow.  We  had  taken 
some  rum  with  us,  and  as  each  took  his  share,  he  knelt  down 
and  allowed  another  to  shake  it  into  his  mouth,  without 
bringing  the  metal  cup  in  contact  with  his  lips.  This  rum, 
though  it  was  strong,  seemed  to  have  lost  all  its  strength  and 
fluidity.  It  tasted  like  innocent  milk,  and  its  consistence  was 
that  of  oil.  The  bread  was  frozen  so  hard  that  we  feared  to 
break  our  teeth  in  biting  it,  and  it  brought  blood  as  we  ate  it. 
The  attempt  to  smoke  a  cigar  was  a  punishment  rather  than 
an  enjoyment,  because  the  icicles  on  our  beards  always  put 
them  out,  and  when  we  took  them  out  of  our  mouths  they 


ON    THE   SONKLAR-GLACIER. 


were  frozen.  Even  the  shortest  pipes  met  the  same  fate. 
The  instruments  I  used  in  surveying  seemed  to  burn  when  I 
touched  them,  and  the  medals  which  my  companions  wore  on 
their  breasts  felt  like  hot  iron. 

2.  The  phenomena  of  cold  which  we  had  the  opportunity 
of  observing  during  this  journey,  and  which  I  immediately  re- 
corded, will  perhaps  justify  a  short  break  in  my  narrative  while 
I  attempt  to  describe  them.  The  horrors  of  a  Scythian  winter 
are  an  ancient  belief,  and  it  used  to  be  counted  wisdom  to  shun 
the  zones  where  men  were  frozen,  as  well  as  the  zones  where  men 


248  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

were  scorched.  But  it  has  been  assumed,  with  great  exaggera- 
tion, that  a  hot  climate  makes  men  sensual  and  timid,  while  a 
cold  climate  renders  them  virtuous  and  bold.  There  is  far  more 
truth  in  the  opinion  held  by  some  observers,  and  especially  by 
Polar  navigators,  that  cold  is  depressing  in  its  influence,  and 
enfeebles  the  powers  of  the  will.  At  first  it  stimulates  to 
action,  but  this  vigour  is  quickly  followed  by  torpidity ;  exer- 
tion is  soon  succeeded  by  the  desire  to  rest.  Persons  exposed 
to  these  alternations  of  increased  action  and  torpor  feel  as  if 
they  were  intoxicated.  From  the  stiffness  and  trembling  of 
their  jaws  they  speak  with  great  effort,  they  display  uncer- 
tainty in  all  their  movements  and  the  stupor  of  somnambulists 
in  their  actions  and  thoughts.  Most  of  the  circumpolar 
animals  escape,  as  much  as  they  can,  the  horrors  of  the  frost : 
some  migrate ;  others,  burying  themselves  in  holes,  sleep 
throughout  the  winter.  The  fish,  which  are  found  in  the 
small  pools  of  sweet  water  on  the  land  are  frozen  in  when 
these  pools  freeze,  and  awake  to  life  and  movement  again 
only  when  the  pools  are  thawed. 

3.  The  human  body,  with  an  inner  warmth  amounting  to 
95°— 100°  F.,  is  exposed  in   the  wastes   of   North    America 
and  Siberia  to  frightful  cold,  the  extremes  of  which  have  been 
noted  by  many  different  observers.     Back  recorded  in  Fort 
Reliance,   Jan.    17,   1833,   the   temperature  —67°  F.  ;  Hayes, 
March  17,  1 86 1,  —  69°  F.  ;  Neverow,  in  Jakutzk,  Jan.  31,  1838, 
-74°  F. ;  Kane,-693  F. ;  Maclure,  Jan.   i853,-73°  F- i  John 
Ross,   1831,  -56°  F.;  and    Parry,  i82i,-55°  F. ;    while   the 
lowest  temperature  which  has  hitherto  been  observed  in  the 
Alpine  countries  of  Europe  is  only  —24°  F.     In  consequence 
of  the  difficulty  of  observing  the   extremes   of   cold,  lower 
temperatures  than  these  can  scarcely  ever  have  been  regis- 
tered. 

4.  In  order  to  illustrate  the  effect  of  an  extraordinarily  low 
temperature  on  the  human  frame,  the  best  point  to  start  from 
is  the  imagination  of  a  man  exposed  without  clothes  to  its 
influence.     At  37°  or  50°  (C.).  of  cold  a  misty  halo  would  en- 
compass him,  the  edges  of  which  would  have,  under  certain 
circumstances,  the  colours  of  the  rainbow.     It  is  evident  that 
the  moisture  of  the  body  rapidly  coming  forth  and  becoming 
visible  in  the   cold   air  would  cause  this  mist,  which  would 


V.]  THE  COLD.  249 

decrease  with  the  heat  of  the  body,  and  disappear  on  the  death 
of  the  frozen  man.  The  purpose  of  clothing  is  to  counteract 
as  much  as  possible  this  twofold  loss  of  warmth  and  moisture, 
which  is  the  principal  cause  of  the  fearful  Arctic  thirst.  But 
even  clothed  men  exposed  to  so  low  a  temperature  present  a 
strange  appearance.  When  they  are  dragging  a  -sledge  on  the 
march  their  breath  streams  forth  like  smoke,  which  is  soon 
transformed  into  a  mass  of  needles  of  ice,  almost  hiding 
their  mouths  from  view  ;  and  the  snow  on  which  they  tread 
steams  with  the  heat  which  it  receives  from  the  snow  beneath. 
The  countless  crystals  of  ice,  which  fill  the  air  and  reduce  the 
clearness  of  day  to  a  dull  yellow  twilight,  make  a  continual 
rustling  noise ;  their  fall  in  .the  form  of  fine  snow-dust,  or 
their  floating  as  frosty  vapour,  is  the  cause  of  that  penetrating 
feeling  of  damp  which  is  so  perceptible  when  the  cold  is 
intense,  and  which  receives  accretions  from  the  vapours  issuing 
from  the  open  places  of  the  sea.  Notwithstanding  all  this, 
there  is  an  indescribable  dryness  in  the  atmosphere,  strongly 
contrasting  with  the  feeling  of  dampness.  Heavy  clouds 
are  impossible ;  the  heavens  are  covered  only  by  mists, 
through  which  the  sun  and  the  moon,  surrounded  by  halos, 
glow  blood-red.  Falls  of  snow,  as  we  understand  the  ex- 
pression, altogether  cease  ;  the  snow  crystals,  under  the  in- 
fluence of  cold,  are  so  minute  as  to  be  almost  invisible.  The 
land,  the  real  home  and  source  of  cold,  acts  as  the  great 
condenser  of  vapour,  and  snow  and  moisture  of  every  kind, 
and  lies  under  a  deep  covering  of  frozen  snow  till  the  colour 
of  its  walls  and  precipices  reappears  in  April.  The  soil,  in 
the  stricter  sense  of  the  word,  is  frozen  as  hard  as  iron 
wherever  it  appears  through  the  snow,  and  the  mean  tem- 
perature of  Franz-Josef  Land  (about  3°  F.)  makes  it  highly 
probable,'  that  the  frost  penetrates  to  the  depth  of  a  thousand 
feet.  Great  cold,  calm  weather,  and  clear  atmosphere  com- 
bined, are  the  characteristics  of  the  interior  of  Arctic  countries. 
The  nearer  we  approach  the  sea;  the  rarer  is  this  combination. 
Light  breezes  sometimes  occur  with  a  temperature  37°  (C.) 
below  zero,1  but  the  atmosphere  is  then  less  transparent. 

5.   It  is  well  known  that  sound  is  propagated  far  more  freely 

1  Hayes  mentions  a  storm  occurring  at  —27°  F.  ;  but  this  is  probably  an  error 
of  the  press. 

18 


250  .  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.. 

in  Polar  regions  than  with  us.  When  the  cold  was  great,  we 
could  hear  conversations,  carried  on  in  the  usual  tone  of  voice, 
distinctly  at  the  distance  of  several  hundred  paces.  Parry 
and  Middendorf  both  assert  that  the  voice  is  more  audible  at 
a  distance  in  cold  weather.  The  propagation  of  sound  seems 
to  find  less  hindrance  from  the  irregular  masses  of  ice  and 
cushions  of  snow,  than  from  the  curtains  of  our  woods  and 
the  carpets  of  our  vegetation.  In  the  mountainous  districts 
of  Europe  many  of  the  characteristics  of  Polar  regions,  be- 
sides intense  cold,  are  met  with  ;  yet  it  is  a  fact,  that  the 
report  of  a  gun  can  scarcely  be  heard  in  those  situations. 
Cold,  however,  can  scarcely  be  regarded  as  the  essential  con- 
.dition  of  this  phenomenon ;  for  the  propagation  of  sound, 
though  in  a  less  striking  degree,  may  be  observed  even  in  the 
summers  there.1  It  would  seem  rather  that  the  amount  of 
moisture  in  the  atmosphere  has  a  more  decided  influence  in 
the  production  of  this  phenomenon. 

6.  When  the  snow  becomes  hard  as  rock,  its  surface  takes  a 
granular  consistence  like  sugar.     Where  it  lies  with  its  massive 
wreaths  frozen  in  the  form  of  billows,  our  steps  resound,  as  we 
walk  over  them,  with  the  sound  as  of  a  drum. ,  The  ice  is  so- 
hard  that  it  emits  a  ringing  sound  ;  wood  becomes  wonderfully 
hard,  splits,  and  is  as  difficult  to  cut  as  bone  ;  butter  becomes 
like  stone  ;  meat  must  be  split,  and  mercury  may  be  fired  as  a 
bullet  from  a  gun.2 

7.  If  cold  thus  acts  on  things  without  life,  how  much  more 
must  it  influence  living  organisms  and  the  power  of  man's 
will !     Cold  lowers  the  beat  of  the  pulse,  weakens  the  bodily 
sensations,  diminishes  the  capacity  of  movement  and  of  en- 
during great  fatigue.     Of  all  the  senses,  taste  and  smell  most 
lose  their  force  and  pungency,  the  mucous  membrane  being  in 
a  constant  state  of  congestion  and  excessive  secretion.     After 
a  time  a  decrease  of  muscular  power  is  also  perceptible.     If 
one  is  exposed  suddenly  to  an  excessive  degree  of  cold,  in- 
voluntarily one  shuts  the  mouth  and  breathes  through  the 

1  In  Greenland  I  once  heard  at  the  distance  of  800  paces  a  conversation  between. 
Borgen  and  Copeland  carried  on  in  the  usual  tone. 

2  Sir  John  Ross  frequently  did  this,  sending  the  bullet  through  a  solid  board. 
The  freezing  point  of  quicksilver  is  —40°  F.     It  varies  however  between  —40°  and 
-45°  F.,  according  to  the  purity  of  the  metal. 


V.]  THE  COLD.  251 

nose ;  the  cold  air  seems  at  first  to  pinch  and  pierce  the 
organs  of  respiration.  The  eyelids  freeze  even  in  calm 
weather,  and  to  prevent  their  closing  we  have  constantly  to 
clear  them  from  ice,  and  the  beard  alone  is  less  frozen  than 
other  parts  of  the  body,  because  the  breath  as  it  issues  from 
the  mouth  falls  down  as  snow.  Snow-spectacles  are  dimmed 
by  the  moisture  of  the  eyes,  and  when  the  thermometer  falls 
37°  (C.)  below  zero  they  are  as  opaque  as  frost-covered 
windows.  The  cold,  however,  is  most  painfully  felt  in  the 
soles  of  the  feet,  when  there  is  a  cessation  of  exercise.  Nervous 
weakness,  torpor,  and  drowsiness  follow,  which  explains  the 
connection  which  is  usually  found  between  resting  and  freezing. 
The  most  important  point,  in  fact,  for  a  sledge  party,  which 
has  such  exertions  to  make  at  a  very  low  temperature,  is  to 
stand  still  as  little  as  possible.  The  excessive  cold  which  is 
felt  in  the  soles  of  the  feet  during  the  noon-day  rest  is  the 
main  reason  why  afternoon  marches  make  such  a  demand  on 
the  moral  power.  Great  cold  also  alters  the  character  of  the 
excretions,  thickens  the  blood,  and  increases  the  need  of 
nourishment  from  the  increased  expenditure  of  carbon.  And 
while  perspiration  ceases  entirely,  the  secretion  of  the  mucous 
membranes  of  the  nose  and  eyes  is  permanently  increased, 
and  the  urine  assumes  almost  a  deep  red  colour.  At  first  the 
bowels  are  much  confined,  a  state  which,  after  continuing  for 
five  and  sometimes  eight  days,  passes  into  diarrhoea.  The 
bleaching  of  the  beard  under  these  influences  is  a  curious 
fact. 

8.  Athough  theoretically,  the  fat  endure  cold  better  than  the 
lean,  in  reality  this  is  often  reversed.  Somewhat  in  the  same 
way  it  might  be  argued  that  the  negro  would  have  an  advan- 
tage over  the  white  man,  for  the  former  as  a  living  black  bulb 
thermometer  is  more  receptive  of  the  warmer  waves  of  heat. 
But  blackening  the  face  or  smearing  the  body  with  grease  are 
experiments  which  could  only  be  recommended  by  those  who 
have  never  been  in  a  position  to  try  them.  The  only  protec- 
tion against  cold  is  clothing  carefully  chosen,  and  contrivances 
to  avoid  the  condensation  of  moisture.  All  articles  of  dress 
are  made  as  stiff  as  iron  by  the  cold.  If  one  puts  off  his  fur 
coat  and  lays  it  down  for  a  few  minutes  on  the  ground,  he 
cannot  put  it  on  again  till  it  be  thawed.  The  fingers  of  woollen 


252  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

gloves  become  as  unpliable  as  if  they  belonged  to  mailed 
gauntlets,  and  therefore  Arctic  travellers,  except  when  engaged 
in  hunting,  prefer  to  use  mittens. 

9.  Constant  precautions  are  needed  against  the  danger  of 
frost-bite,   and   the  nose  of   the   Arctic   voyager   especially 
becomes  a  most  serious  charge.     But  no  sooner  has  its  safety 
been  secured,  than  the  hands  which  have  rubbed  it  with  snow 
are  threatened  with  the  same  fate.     The  ears,  however,  are 
well  protected  from  frost  by  the  hood.     Frost-bite,  which  is 
caused  by  the  stoppage  of  blood  in  the   capillaries,   evinces 
itself  by   a  feeling  of  numbness,  which,  if  not  immediately 
attended  to,  increases  to  a  state  of  complete  rigidity.     Slight 
cases  are  overcome  by  rubbing  the  part  affected  with  snow. 
When  the  cold  is  excessive,  feeling  accompanied  with  a  prick- 
ling sensation  only  returns  after  rubbing  for  hours.    Under  all 
circumstances,  freezing  water  with  an  infusion  of  hydrochloric 
acid  is  the  best  means  of  restoring  circulation.     When  the 
frost-bitten  member  is  immersed  in  this,  it  is  at  once  over- 
spread with  a  coating  of  ice,  but  as  the  temperature  of  the 
water  slowly  rises  the  frozen  limb  is  gradually  thawed.     The 
longer  persons  are  exposed  to  a  low  temperature,  the  greater 
becomes  their  sensitiveness  under  it.     Their  noses,  lips  and 
hands  swell,  and  the  skin  on  those  parts  becomes  like  parch- 
ment, cracks,   and   is  most  sensitive  to  pain  from  the  least 
breath  of  wind.     In  cases  of  neglected  frost-bite,  the  violet 
colour  of  a  nose  or  hand  is  perpetuated,  in  spite  of  all  the 
efforts   made    to   banish   it.     Frost-bites   of    a   more   severe 
character  will  not  yield  to   mere   rubbings   with  snow,   but 
should  be  treated  with  the  kind  of  cold  bath  we  have  described, 
continued    for   some    days.      The  formation    of  blisters,  the 
swelling  of  the  parts  affected,  great  sensitiveness  and  liability 
to   a   recurrence  of  the  malady,  are  the  consequences.      In 
many  cases  a  sensitiveness  to  changes  of  temperature  lasts 
for  several  years.     Amputation    is  inevitable   in  severe  and 
neglected   cases.      When   circulation   has   been    restored,    a 
mixture   of  iodine  and  collodion— 10  grains  to  an  ounce — 
may,  according  to  the  experience  of  Dr.  Kepes,  be  advanta- 
geously applied  to  reduce  the  inflammation  which  generally 
results. 

10.  It  is  remarkable  that  great  heat  as  well  as  great  cold 


v.]  THE  COLD.  253 

should  generate  the  great  evil — thirst.  It  is  also  remarkable 
how  rapidly  the  demoralisation  produced  by  thirst  extends 
when  any  one  of  the  party  begins  to  show  signs  of  suffering 
from  it.  Habit,  however,  enables  men  to  struggle  against 
thirst  more  successfully  than  against  hunger.  Many  try  to 
relieve  it  by  using  snow ;  which  is  especially  pernicious  when 
its  temperature  falls  considerably  below  the  point  of  lique- 
faction. .  Inflammation  of  the  mouth  and  tongue,  rheumatic 
pains  in  the  teeth,  diarrhoea,  and  other  mischiefs,  are  the  con- 
sequences, whenever  a  party  incautiously  yields  to  the  tempta- 
tion of  such  a  momentary  relief.  It  is  in  fact  a  mere  delusion, 
because  it  is  impossible  to  eat  as  much  snow — say  a  cubic  foot 
—  as  would  be  requisite  to  furnish  an  adequate  amount  of 
water.  Snow  of  a  temperature  of  37°  to  50°  (C.)  below  zero 
feels  in  the  mouth  like  hot  iron,  and  does  not  quench,  but 
increases  thirst,  by  its  inflammatory  action  on  the  mucous 
membranes  of  the  parts  it  affects.  The  Eskimos  prefer  to 
endure  any  amount  of  thirst  rather  than  eat  snow,  and  it  is 
only  the  Tschuktschees  who  indulge  in  it  as  a  relish  with  their 
food,  which  is  always  eaten  cold.  Snow-eaters  during  the 
march  were  regarded  by  us  as  weaklings,  much  in  the  same 
way  as  opium-eaters  are.  Catarrhs  of  every  kind  are  less 
frequent  in  Polar  expeditions,  and  the  chills  to  which  we  are 
exposed  by  passing  suddenly  from  the  cold  of  the  land 
journey  to  the  warmer  temperature  of  the  ship,  have  no  evil 
consequences.  It  deserves  to  be  investigated  whether  this 
arises  from  the  difference  of  the  amount  of  ozone  in  the 
atmosphere  of  the  respective  latitudes. — Now  let  us  return  to 
our  journey. 

ii.  After  crossing  over  the  Sonklar-Glacier  and  measuring 
its  slight  inclination  of  IJ  6',  we  climbed  an  elevation  to 
ascertain  the  most  promising  route  for  penetrating  in  a 
northerly  direction  ;  and  none  seemed  better  suited  than  that 
which  lay  over  its  back,  which  seemed  free  from  crevasses. 
But  we  looked  in  vain  for  the  fancied  paradise  of  the  interior, 
which  had  existed  only  in  our  desire  to  clothe  in  glowing 
colours  the  Land,  from  which  we  had  been  so  long  held  back. 
The  true  character,  however,  of  Kaiser  Franz-Josef  Land,  so 
far  as  it  'could  be  explored  in  this  and  the  following  sledge 
expeditions,  will  be  the  subject  of  the  next  chapter.  The 


254  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

accompanying  sketch  represents  a  block  of  snow,  about  the 
height  of  a  man,  at  the  foot  of  the  Sonklar-Glacier,  to  which 
the  winds  had  given  a  fanlike  shape.  In  the  afternoon,  after 
inspecting  the  stakes  which  we  had  fixed  for  measuring  the 
motion  of  the  glacier,  we  came  back  to  the  tent  and  began 
our  return  march  to  Cape  TegetthofT  and  the  ship.  A  cutting 
wind  compelled  us  to  make  constant  efforts  against  frost-bites. 
With  a  heavy  creaking  noise  the  sledge  was  dragged  over  the 
hard  snow,  and  to  our  reduced  strength  it  seemed  to  be  laden 
with  a  double  load.  The  night  is  generally  the  hardest  part 
of  such  expeditions,  and  our  camping  out  during  the  night 
under  the  cliffs  of  Cape  Tegetthoff  was  especially  bitter. 
Happy  was  he  who,  exhausted  by  the  labour  of  dragging, 
fell  asleep  at  once.  As  usual,  we  dug  a  deep  hole  in  the  snow 


BLOCK  OF   SNOW. 


and  loosened  it  as  much  as  possible,  so  that  we  might  profit 
by  its  property  of  being  one  of  the  worst  conductors  of  heat. 
In  a  short  time  the  inside  of  the  tent  was  covered  with  rime 
frost,  and  we  ourselves  with  ice.  The  tongue  only  seemed  to 
recover  its  former  mobility  with  those  who  bewailed  their  loss 
of  knives,  stockings,  gloves — yea,  of  everything,  even  their 
place  in  the  tent.  They  ate  their  portion  of  bear's  flesh  "much 
as  if  they  had  been  chloroformed,  and  dropping  asleep  in  their 
stiffened  icy  coat  of  mail,  they  were  awoke  by  its  gradual 
thawing,  to  reiterate  without  cessation  how  cold  it  was ;  a 
fact  which  no  one  present  was  prepared  to  dispute.  The 
alcohol  thermometer  stood  at  -  56°  F.  (—48°  on  board  the 
ship),  and  when  the  warmth  produced  by  the  exercise  we 
had  taken  and  by  the  effects  of  supper  was  gone,  the  feeling 
of  cold  was  so  intense  that  it  seemed  far  more  probable  that 


V.]  THE  COLD.  255 

we  should  be  frozen  to  death  than  that  we  should  sleep.  The 
cook  therefore  received  orders  to  brew  some  strong  grog,  and 
forthwith  six  spirit-flames  burnt  under  the  kettle  filled  with 
snow;  but  to  make  snow  of  such  extreme  coldness  boil  quickly 
we  should  have  had  to  place  the  kettle  over  Vesuvius  itself  in 
the  height  of  an  eruption. 

12.  We  now  slept  without  stirring  a  limb,  and  about  five 
o'clock  in  the  morning  of  the  i$th  of  March  we  started  to 
compass  the  twenty  miles  which  lay  between  us  and  the  ship 
in  one  march,  without  encountering  the  suffering  of  another 
night's  camping  out  in  the  snow.     The  weather  was  as  clear 
as  it  is  possible  to  be  at  a  temperature  of  —  52°  F.,  and  going 
along  with  a  light  breeze  from  the  north,  we  made  use  of  our 
sledge   sail  to   such    advantage  that  we    reached  the  gentle 
ascent  of  the  west  point  of  Wilczek  Island  after  a  march  of 
seven  hours.     We  formed  a  second  de^ot  of  provisions  on  the 
summit  of  a  rocky  promontory,  whence  we  discerned  with  a 
telescope  the  masts  and  yards  of  the  ship  lying  behind  an  ice- 
berg, and  our  fears  and  anxieties  lest  it  should  have  drifted 
away  in  our  absence  were  dissipated  by  this  glad  view.     Our 
return  to  the  ship  could  no  longer  be  a  matter  of  choice ;  it  had 
become  a  necessity.     Lettis  had  been  unable  for  some  days  to 
take  any  share  in  the  labour  of  dragging,  and  walked  along  in 
shoes  made  of  reindeer  hide,  on  account  of  his  frost-bitten 
feet.     Haller  also  wore  similar  shoes  to  save  his  swollen  feet ; 
Cattarinch's  face  was  frost-bitten,  anoT  he  too  suffered  from 
lameness  ;  Pospischill,  who  could  no  longer  wear  his  shrunk-up 
fur  coat,  so  suffered  from  frost-bite  in  both  hands,  that  I  sent 
him  on  to  the  ship,  that  he  might  have  the  help  of  the  doctor 
as  soo'n  as  possible.     It  was  with  much  effort  that  we  made' 
the  last  six  hours'  march  ;  and  when  at  length,  stiff  with  ice, 
we  passed  between  the  hummocks  that  lay  around  the  ship, 
Weyprecht,  Brosch,  Orel,  and  eight  sailors  came  to  meet  us, 
who,  alarmed  at  the  inability  of  Pospischill  to  speak  in  answer 
to  their  questions,   had  set  out   from  the   ship  in  order  to 
find  us. 

13.  As  I  entered  my  berth  I  heard  the  hard  breathing  of 
our  poor  comrade  Krisch.     For  more  than  a  week  he  had  lain 
without  consciousness  ;  yet  death  had  not  come  to  relieve  him. 
On  the  afternoon  of  the  i6th  of  March  a  sudden  cessation  of 


CHAP,  v.]  THE  COLD.  257 

all  sound  told  us  that  he  was  no  more  !  Next  day,  his  body, 
placed  in  a  coffin,  was  brought  on  deck,  and  our  flag  hoisted 
half-mast  high.  On  the  I9th,  when  the  thermometer  was  at 
—  13°  R,  the  body  was  committed  to  its  lonely  grave  in  the  far 
north.  A  mournful  procession  left  the  ship,  with  a  sledge,  on 
which  rested  the  coffin  covered  with  a  flag  and  cross,  and 
wended  its  way  to  the  nearest  elevation  on  the  shore  of 
Wilczek  Island.  Silently  struggling  against  the  drifting  snow, 
we  marched  on,  dragging  our  burden  through  desolate  reaches 
of  snow,  till  we  arrived,  after  a  journey  of  an  hour  and  a  half, 
at  the  point  we  sought  on  the  island.  Here,  in  a  fissure 
between  basaltic  columns,  we  deposited  his  earthly  remains, 
filling  up  the  cavity  with  stones,  which  we  loosened  with  much 
labour,  and  which  the  wind,  as  we  stood  there,  covered  with 
wreaths  of  snow.  We  read  the  prayer  for  the  dead  over  him 
who  had  shared  in  our  sufferings  and  trials,  but  who  was  not 
destined  to  return  home  with  us  with  the  news  of  our  success  ; 
and  close  by  the  spot,  surrounded  with  every  symbol  of  death 
and  far  from  the  haunts  of  men,  we  raised  as  our  farewell  a 
simple  wooden  cross.  Our  sad  and  solemn  task  done,  there 
rose  in  our  hearts  the  thought,  whether  we  ourselves  should  be 
permitted  to  return  home,  or  whether  we  too  should  find  our 
resting-place  in  the  unapproachable  wastes  of  the  icy  north. 
The  wind  blowing  over  the  stiff  and  stark  elevation  where  we 
stood,  covered  us  all  with  a  thick  coating  of  snow,  and  caused 
the  appearance  of  frost-bite  in  the  faces  and  hands  of  some 
of  our  party.  The  decoration  of  the  grave  of  our  comrade 
with  a  suitable  inscription  was  therefore  deferred  till  the 
weather  proved  more  favourable.  We  found  considerable 
difficulty  in  returning  to  the  ship  through  an  atmosphere  filled 
with  snow.1 

*  It  may  easily  happen  in  such  weather  that  travellers  on  the  ice  should  have 
great  difficulty  in  finding  the  ship,  though  they  should  pass  by  it  at  less  than  200 
paces  distant.  The  direction  of  the  wind  contributes  but  little  towards  the  ascer- 
taining of  their  position  ;  amid  hummocks  of  ice  the  wind  constantly  changes.  On 
the  6th  of  March,  Mailer  and  I  wandered  about  for  hours  amid  drifting  snow-storms. 
Pekel,  who  came  to  us  from  the  ship,  guided  us  rightly. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

• 

A  GENERAL    DESCRIPTION   OF    KAISER   FRANZ-JOSEF  LAND. 

IN  now  presenting  a  general  view  of  those  parts  of  Kaiser 
Franz-Josef  Land  which  were  explored  by  us,  I  must  be 
allowed  to  anticipate  the  order  of  my  narrative  which  describes 
the  subsequent  sledge  expeditions,  by  which  our  knowledge  of 
the  discovered  country  was  so  considerably  enlarged. 

1.  The  country,  even  in  its  already  ascertained  extent,  is 
almost   as   large  as   Spitzbergen,    and    consists  of  two    main 
masses — Wilczek  Land  on  the  east,  and  Zichy  Land  on  the 
west,  between  which  runs  a  broad  sound  called  Austria  Sound, 
extending  in  a  northerly  direction  from  Cape  Frankfort  till  it 
forks  at  the  extremity  of  Crown-Prince  Rudolf's  Land,  80°  40' 
N.  L.     One  branch  of  it,  a  broad  arm  running  to  the  north- 
east— Rawlinson  Sound — we  traced  as  far  as  Cape  Buda-Pesth. 
Wilczek  and  Zichy  Lands  are  both  intersected  by  many  fiords, 
and  numerous  islands  lie  off  their  coasts. 

2.  A  continuous  surface  of  ice  extends  from  the  one  land  to 
the  other.     At  the  time  of  our  exploration,  this  expanse  was 
formed   of  ice,  for  the  most  part  not   more  than  a  year  in 
growth,  but  crossed  in  many  places  with  fissures  and  broad 
barriers  of  piled-up  ice.     Throughout  its  whole  extent  we  saw 
many  icebergs,  which  we  never  did  in  the  Novaya  Zemlya 
seas  ;    whence  it   is  to  be  inferred  that  they  sail  away  in  a 
northerly  direction.1     Our  track  lay  over  this  ice-sheet.     As 

1  There  are  no  glaciers  on  the  coast  of  Siberia,  and  the  glaciers  of  Spitzbergen  are 
not,  it  seems,  large  enough  to  detach  icebergs.  May  not,  therefore,  the  icebergs 
which  gather  at  Hope  Island,  as  well  as  these  which  are  met  with  on  the  northern 
coasts  of  Siberia,  originate  in  the  glaciers  of  Franz-Josef  Land  ?  Barentz  saw,  in 
August,  1596,  on  the  northern  coasts  of  Novaya  Zemlya,  as  many  as  400  icebergs. 


CH.  vr.]  DESCRIPTION  OF  KAISER  FRANZ-JOSEF  LAND.     259 

long  as  it  remains  unbroken,  every  fiord  might  serve  as  a 
winter  harbour ;  but  if  it  should  break  up,  not  a  single  locality 
suitable  to  form  one  presented  itself  along  the  coasts  we 
visited,  which  had  no  small  indentations.1 

3.  The  map  of  this  country,  which  we  present,  was  designed 
and  constructed  from   fifteen  observations  of   latitude,    from 
many   observations  made  with  the   azimuth   compass,    from 
drawings,  and  from  a  system  of  triangulation,  which,  from  the 
nature   of  the    circumstances    under   which   it   was   formed,2 
makes  no  pretensions  to  absolute  exactitude.     The  heights  of 
the   mountains,  were  determined  by   the  aneroid  barometer. 
Near  the  ship  a  base    of  2I7O'8   metres   was   measured    by 
Weyprecht  and  Orel,  and  connected   trigonometrically  with 
the    nearest    promontories.     This  work  of  theirs  formed  the 
basis  of  my  surveys. 

4.  It  has  always  been  a  principle  and  a  practice  with  Arctic 
explorers  to  name  their  discoveries  either  after  the  promoters 
of  their  special  expeditions,  or  after  their  predecessors  in  the 
work  of  discovery.     Though  they  are  never  likely  to  become 
important  to  the  material  interests  of  mankind,  the  naming 
the  lands  we  discovered  after  those  who  promoted  our  expedi- 
tion, was,  we  considered,  the  most  enduring  form  by  which  we 
could  express  our  gratitude  for  their  efforts  in  furtherance  of  a 
great  idea.    The  localities,  I  may  add,  were  named  during  the 
work  of  surveying. 

5.  As  I   have  had  the  privilege  of  visiting  all  the  Arctic 
lands  north  of  the  Atlantic,  I  have  been  able  to  compare  them 
and  observe  their  resemblances  as  well  as  their   differences. 
West  Greenland  is  a  high  uniform  glacier-plateau  ;  East  Green- 
land is  a  magnificent  Alpine  land  with  a  comparatively  rich 
vegetation  and  abundant  animal  life.     How  and   where  the 
transition  between  these  opposite  characters  takes  place  in 
the  interior  is  as  yet  utterly  unknown.     We  may  form  some 
notion  of  Spitzbergen  and  Novaya  Zemlya,  if  we  imagine  a 
mountain-range,  like  that  of  the    Oetzthal  with  its  glaciers, 
rising  from  the  level  of  the  sea,  if  that  level  were  raised  about 

1  This  of  course  does  not  exclude  the  possibility  of  finding  appropriate  winter 
harbours  in  those  Sounds  we  were  unable  to  visit ;  most  probably  such  occur  in 
Markham  Sound,  which  abounds  in  fiords. 

3  This  applies  especially  to  the  region  lying  to  the  north  of  81°  10'. 


2Co  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  • 

9,000  feet.  There  is  more  softness,  however,  in  both  these 
countries  than  is  usual  in  the  regions  of  the  high  north.  But 
Franz-Josef  Land  has  all  the  severity  of  the  higher  Arctic 
lands ;  it  appears,  especially  in  spring,  to  be  denuded  of  life 
of  every  kind.  Enormous  glaciers  extend  from  the  lofty 
solitudes  of  the  mountains,  which  rise  in  bold  conical  forms. 
A  covering  of  dazzling  whiteness  is  spread  over  everything. 
The  rows  of  basaltic  columns,  rising  tier  above  tier,  stand  out 
as  if  crystallized.  The  natural  colour  of  the  rocks  was  not 
visible,  as  is  usually  the  case  :  even  the  steepest  walls  of  rock 
were  covered  with  ice,  the  consequence  of  incessant  precipi- 
tation, and  of  the  condensation  of  the  excessive  moisture  on 
the  cold  faces  of  the  rock.  This  moisture  in  a  country  whose 
mean  annual  temperature  is  about  3°  F.,  seems  to  indicate  its 
insular  character,  for  Greenland  and  Siberia  are  both  remarkable 
for  the  dryness  of  their  cold,  and  it  was  singular  that  even 
north  winds  occasioned  a  fall  of  temperature  in  Franz-Josef 
Land.  In  consequence  of  their  enormous  glaciation,  and  of 
the  frequent  occurrence  of  plateau  forms,  the  new  lands 
recalled  the  characteristic  features  of  West  Greenland,  in  the 
lower  level  of  the  snow-line  common  to  both,  and  in  their 
volcanic  formation.  Isolated  groups  of  conical  mountains  and 
table-lands,  which  are  peculiar  to  the  basaltic  formation,  con- 
sjbitute  the  mountain-system  of  Franz-Josef  Land  ;  chains  of 
mountains  were  nowhere  seen.  These  mountain  forms  are  the 
results  of  erosion  and  denudation  ;  there  were  no  isolated 
volcanic  cones.  The  mountains,  as  a  rule,  are  about  2,000  or 
3,000  feet  high,  except  in  the  south-west,  where  they  attain 
the  height  of  about  5,000  feet. 

6.  The  later  Arctic  expeditions  have  established  the  exist- 
ence of  vast  volcanic  formations  in  the  high  north,  and  of  very 
recent  deposits  in  their  depressions.  In  fact,  a  vast  volcanic 
zone  seems  to  extend  from  East  Greenland,  through  Iceland, 
Jan  May  en  and  Spitzbergen,  to  Franz-Josef  Land.  The 
geological  features  of  the  latter  are  at  any  rate  in  harmony 
with  those  of  North-east  Greenland.  The  tertiary  Brown- 
coal  sandstone  of  East  Greenland  is  also  found  in  Franz-Josef 
Land,  though  Brown-coal  itself  is  met  with  only  in  small  beds, 
which,  nevertheless,  may  be  reckoned  among  the  many  indica- 
tions that  the  climate  of  Polar  lands  must  once  have  been 


vi.]       DESCRIPTION  OF  KAISER  FRANZ-JOSEF  LAND.      261 

as  genial  as  the  climate  of  Central  Europe  at  the  present  day. 
The  kind  of  rock  which  predominates  is  a  crystalline  aggre- 
gation called  by  the  Swedes  "  Hyperstenite  "  (Hypersthene), 
identical  with  the  Dolerite  of  Greenland  ;  but  the  Dolerite  of 
Franz-Josef  Land  is  of  a  coarser-grained  texture,  and  of  a 
dark  yellowish  green  colour;  according  to  Professor  Tschermak 
(the  Director  of  the  Imperial  Mineralogical  Museum  at  Vienna), 
it  consists  of  Plagioclase,  Augite,  Olivine,  titaniferous  Iron 
and  ferruginous  Chlorite.  The  mountains  of  this  system, 
forming  table-lands,  with  precipitous  rocky  sides,  give  to  the 
country  we  discovered  its  peculiar  physiognomy. 

7.  The   Dolerite   of   Franz-Josef    Land   greatly  resembles 
also  the  Dolerite   of   Spitzbergen.     After  the  return  of  the 
expedition  I  saw*in  London  some  photographic  views  of  the 
mountains  of  North-East  Land,  Spitzbergen,  taken  by  Mr. 
Leigh-Smith,  and  I  was  at  once  struck  with  the  resemblance 
between    their    forms   and    those   of    Franz-Josef    Land.     I 
learnt   also    from     Professor    Nordenskjold,   the    celebrated 
explorer  of  Spitzbergen,  as  I  passed  through  Sweden,  that 
the  rock  of  North-East   Land  was   this  same  Hyperstenite 
(Hypersthene).     Hence  the  geological  coincidence  of  Spitz- 
bergen and  Franz-Josef  Land  would  seem  to  be  established  ; 
and  this  geological   affinity,  viewed  in  connection  with  the 
existence  of  lands   more  or  less  known,  appears  to  indicate 
that  groups  of  islands  will  be  found  in  the  Arctic  seas  on  the 
north  of  Europe,  as  we  know  that  such  abound  in  the  Arctic 
seas  of  North  America.     Gillis'  Land  and  King  Karl's  Land 
are,   perhaps,  the  most    easterly  islands  of  the  Spitzbergen 
group  ;  for  it  is  not  probable  that  these  and  the  lands  we 
discovered  form  one  continuous  uninterrupted  whole. 

8.  Amygdaloids,  so  common  in  Greenland,  were  never  found 
by    us    in    Franz-Josef  Land ;    and   while   the   rocks   in  the 
southern  portions  of  the   country  were   often  aphanitic  and 
so  far  true  basait,  in  the  north  they  were  coarse-grained  and 
contained  Nepheline.     The  other  rocks  consisted  of  a  whitish 
quartzose  sandstone,  with  a  clayey  cement,  and  of  another 
finely-grained  sandstone,  containing  small  granules  of  quartz 
and  greenish-grey  particles  of  chlorite,  and  also  of  yellowish 
finely-laminated  clay  slate.      Erratics,  so  far  as  my  oppor- 
tunities permitted    me   to  judge,  were   of    rare   occurrence ; 


262  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

but  we  found  many  smaller  pieces  of  petrified  wood,  allied  to 
lignite. 

9.  Some  of  the  islands  of  the  Spitzbergen  and  Franz-Josef 
Land  group  must  be  of  considerable  extent,   because  they 
bear  enormous  glaciers,  which  are  possible  only  in  extensive 
countries.     Their  terminal   precipices,  sometimes  more  than 
100  feet  high,  form  generally  the  coast-lines.     The  colour  of 
all  the  glaciers  we  visited  inclined  to  grey,  we  seldom   found 
the  dull  green-blue  hue ;  the  granules  of  their  ice  were  extra- 
ordinarily large  ;  there  were  few  crevasses ;  and  the  moraines 
were  neither  large  nor  frequent.     Their  movement  was  slow  ; 
and  the  snow-line  commences  at  about  1,000  feet  above  the 
level,  whereas  on  the  glaciers  of  Greenland  and  Spitzbergen 
the  like  limit  is  generally  2,000  or  even  3,000  feet,  and  in 
these  countries  also,  all  below  that  line  is  free  from  sriow  in 
summer.     Franz-Josef  Land,  on  the  contrary,  appears  even  in 
summer  to  be  buried  under  perpetual  snow,  interrupted  only 
where  precipitous  rock  occurs.     Almost  all  the  glaciers  reach 
down  to  the  sea.     Crevasses,  even  when  the  angle  of  inclina- 
tion  of  the   glacier   is  very  great,  are    much   less    frequent 
than   in   our  Alps,  and   in  every  respect   the  lower   glacier 
regions  of  Franz-Josef  Land  approach   the  character  of  the 
neves  of  our  latitudes.     There  only  was  it  possible  to   deter- 
mine the  thickness  of  the  annual  deposits  of  snow  and  ice.    In 
these  lower  portions,  the  layers  were  from  a  foot  to  a  foot-and- 
a-half  thick  ;  fine  veins,  about  an  inch  wide,  of  blue  alternating 
with  streaks  of  white  ice  ran  through  them,  which  occurred 
with   peculiar   distinctness  at  the  depth  of  about  a  fathom. 
On  the  whole,  this  peculiar  structure  of  alternating  bands  or 
veins  was  not  so  distinctly  marked  as  it  is  in  the  glaciers  of 
the  Alps,  because  the  alternations  of  temperature  and  of  the 
precipitations  are  very  much  less  in  such  kigh  latitudes. 

10.  The  glacier  ice  of  Franz-Josef  Land  was  far  less  dense 
than  the  glacier  ice  of  East   Greenland  ;  whence  it  appears 
that  movement,   as  a  factor  in  the  structure  of  the  glacier, 
predominates  in   Franz-Josef-  Land   more  than  the  factor  of 
regelation.     Even  at  the  very  end  of  the  glaciers,  granules  an 
inch  long  are  distinctly  traceable  in  its  layers,   and  in  the 
neve  region  especially  the  glacier  ice   is   exceedingly  porous. 
The  great  tendency  of  the  climate  of  Franz-Josef  Land   to 


VI.]      DESCRIPTION  OF  KAISER  FRANZ-JOSEF  LAND.      263 


promote  glaciation  is  manifested  in  the  fact,  that  all  the 
smaller  islands  are  covered  with  glaciers  with  low  rounded 
tops,  so  that  a  section  through  them  would  present  a  regular 
defined  segment  of  a  circle  ;  hence  many  ice-streams  descend- 
ing from  the  summits  of  the  plateaus  spread  themselves  over 
the  mountain-slopes  and  need  not  to  be  concentrated  in 
valleys  and  hollows  in  order  to  become  glaciers.  Yet  many 
glaciers  occur — the  Middendorf  Glaciers,  for  example — whose 
vertical  depth  amounts  to  many  hundred  feet.  Their  fissures 
and  the  height  of  the  icebergs  show  this.  It  was  unfortunately 
impossible  for  us  to  explore  the  Dove  Glacier,  the  largest  of 
all  we  saw,  owing  to  its  great  distance  from  the  line  of  our 
route.  Evaporation  from  the  surface  of  the  glacier  goes  on 
with  great  intensity  during  those  summer  months  when  the 
daylight  is  continual,  and  deep  water-courses  show  that  streams 
of  thaw-water  then  flow  over  it. 

11.  The  comparison  of  the  temperature  of  the  air  within 
the  crevasses  of  the  glaciers  with  the  external  air,  invariably 
proved,  that  within  the  crevasses  the  temperature  was  higher. 
The  traces  of  liquefaction  in  the  glacier  during  winter,  arising 
from  the  warmth  of  the  earth,  could  not  be  observed,  because 
the  sides  and  under-edge  of   the  glaciers  were  inaccessible 
from  the  enormous  masses  of  snow,   and  the  icicles  of  the 
terminal  arches  and  precipices  could  be  ascribed  only  to  the 
freezing  of  the  thaw- water  of  the  preceding  summer. 

12.  The  plasticity  of  the  glaciers  was  so  great,  that  branches 
of   them,    separated  by  jutting-out  rocks,  flowed  into    each 
other  again  at  their  base,  without  showing  any  considerable 
crevasses.     We   could    only   in   a   few   cases  judge  of  their 
movement  by  direct  measurement,  and  we  had  never  more 
than   one   day   to   test   it.     One   observation   made   on   the 
Sonklar  Glacier  in  the    month    of   March  did  not  seem  to 
support  the  notion  of  the  advance  of  the  glaciers  ;  but  the 
repetition  of  similar  experiments,  some  weeks  later,  made  on 
two  glaciers  on  the  south  of  Austria  Sound,  gave  the  mean  of 
two  inches  as  the  daily  movement.     It  is  very  probable  that 
their  movement  begins  in  the  Arctic  regions  somewhat  later 
than  in  our  latitudes,  perhaps  at  the  end  of  July  or  beginning 
of  August,  because  the  period  of  the  greatest  liquefaction  then 
ends,  while  it  is  at  its   minimum  in  March  and  the  beginning 


264  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

of  April.  The  signs  of  glacier-movement  were  apparent  in 
the  detachment  of  icebergs  in  the  month  of  March,  but  more 
frequently  in  the  month  of  May — as  at  the  Simony  Glacier — 
and  in  the  crashing-in  of  the  ice-sheet  at  their  base  in  the 
month  of  April — as  at  the  Middendorf  Glacier  ;  and  the 
appearance  of  "  glacier  dirt,"  where  there  is  no  material  to 
furnish  a  moraine, — as  on  the  Forbes  Glacier — must  be 
regarded  as  a  sign  of  its  onward  movement  or  lateral  ex- 
tension. The  infrequency  of  moraines  may  be  explained  by 
the  resistance  which  Dolerite  offers  to  weathering,  and  may 
also  be  regarded  as  a  sign  of  the  slow  movement  of  the 
glaciers.  Red  snow  was  seen  once  only,  in  the  month  of 
May,  on  the  precipices  westward  of  Cape  Briinn.  We  never 
met  with  glacier  insects,  although  they  are  common  in 
Greenland ;  and  .however  diligently  I  looked  for  them  I 
never  saw  unmistakable  traces  of  the  grinding  and  polishing 
of  rocks  by  glacier  action. 

13.  .It   is    well  known    that  the    north-east  of   Greenland 
as  well  as  Novaya  Zemlya  and  Siberia  are  slowly  rising  from 
the  sea,  nay,  that  all  the  northern  regions  of  the  globe  have 
for  ages  participated    in  this   movement.     It  was,  therefore, 
exceedingly  interesting  to  observe  the  characteristic  signs  of 
this  upheaval    in  the  terraced  beaches,   covered   with  debris 
containing  organic  remains  along  the  coast  of  Austria  Sound. 
The  ebb  and  flow,  which  elevates  and  breaks  up  the  bay-ice 
only  at  the  edge,  is  to  be  traced  on  the  shores  of  Austria 
Sound  by  a  tidal  mark  of  two  feet. 

14.  The   vegetation    was    everywhere    extremely   scanty, 
crushed,  not   so  much  by  the  intensity  of  the  cold  as  by 
its  long   continuance,   and   is   far   below    the   vegetation   of 
Greenland,  Spitzbergen,  and  Novaya  Zemlya.     It  resembled, 
not  indeed  in  species  but  in  its  general  character,  the  vegeta- 
tion   of   the   Alps  at  an  elevation  of  9,000  or  10,000  feet, 
while  the  Alpine  region  corresponding  to  the  vegetation  of 
East  Greenland  lies  a  thousand  feet  lower.     We  found  neither 
the  stunted  birches  and  willows,  nor  the  numerous  phaeno- 
gamous  plants  of  East  Greenland,  Spitzbergen,  and  Novaya 
Zemlya.     The  rare  appearance  of  soil  chiefly  contributes  to 
this  extremely  sparse  vegetation,  the  detritus  of  the  country 
resembling  the  meagre  "  dirt "  layer  on  an  old  moraine,  here 


vi.]      DESCRIPTION  OF  KAISER  FRANZ-JOSEF  LAND.      265 

and  there  enlivened  by  a  small  patch  of  green.  Although  we 
visited  Franz-Josef  Land  at  the  season  in  which  vegetation 
begins  to  stir,  nowhere  could  there  be  seen  a  patch  of  sward, 
even  a  few  feet  square,  to  recall  the  features  of  our  latitudes, 
although  we  examined  depressions  very  favourably  situated 
and  free  from  snow.  Some  level  spots  showed  patches  of 
thin  meagre  grasses  of  Catabrosa  algida  (Fries),  a  few  speci- 
mens of  Saxifraga  oppositifolia  and  of  Silene  acaulis,  rarely 
Cerastium  alpinum  or  Paptiver  nudicale  (L.).  Thick,  cushion- 
like  tufts  of  mosses  were  more  frequently  discovered.  There- 
were  abundance  of  lichens :  Imbricaria  stygia  (Acharius), 
Buellia  stigmatea  (Korber),  Gyrophora  anthracina  (Wulfen), 
Cetraria  nivalis  (Acharius),  Usnea  melaxantha  (Acharius), 
Bryopogon  jubatiis  (Korber),  Rhizocarpon  geographicum 
(Korber),  Sporastatia  Morio  (Korber) — and  the  Umbilicaria 
arctica  of  winter,  which  we  found  in  Greenland  at  an  elevation 
of  7,000  feet.  These  specifications  I  owe  to  the  kindness  of 
Professor  Fenzl,  director  of  the  Botanical  Garden  in  Vienna, 
and  of  Professor  Reichhardt  The  museum  of  this  institu- 
tion accepted  the  small  collection  of  plants  I  was  able  to 
bring  to  Europe.  Of  some  of  these  there  remained  nothing 
but  withered  roots,  so  that  it  was  impossible  to  determine 
their  character.  Nature  in*  those  regions,  unable  to  deck 
herself  with  the  colours  of  plants,  produces  an  imposing 
effect  by  her  rigid  forms,  and  in  summer  by  the  glare  of 
the  ice  and  snow  ;  and  as  there  are  lands  which  are  stifled 
by  the  excess  of  Nature's  gifts  and  blessings,  so  .  as  even 
to  defy  efforts  of  civilization,  here  in  the  high  North  another 
extreme  is  displayed — absolute  barrenness  and  nakedness, 
which  render  it  quite  uninhabitable. 

15.  Drift-wood,  chiefly  of  an  old  date,  we  frequently  found, 
but  in  small  quantities.  On  the  shore  of  Cape  Tyrol,  we 
once  saw  a  log  of  pine  or  larch  one  foot  thick  and  several  feet 
long,  lying  a  little  above  the  water-line,  and  which  might  have 
been  driven  thither  by  the  wind;  as  the  Tegetthoff  was.  The 
fragments  of  wood  we  found— the  branches  on  which  showed 
that  they  did  not  come  from  a  ship — were  of  the  pine  genus 
(Pinus  picea,  Du  Roy),  and  must  have  come  from  the 
southern  regions  of  Siberia,  as  the  large  broad  rings  of 
growth  showed. 
19 


266  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 


1 6.  Franz- Josef  Land  is,  as  may  be  supposed,  entirely 
uninhabited,  and  we  never  came  on  any  traces  of  settle- 
ments. It  is  very  questionable  whether  Eskimos  would  have 
been  able  to  find  there  the  means  of  subsistence,  and  if 
anywhere  most  likely  on  the  western  side  of  Wilczek  Island, 
where  an  " ice-hole"  of  considerable  extent  remained  open 
for  a  great  part  of  the  year. 

v  17.  In  the  southern  parts  it  is  destitute  of  every  kind  of 
animal  life,  with  the  exception  of  Polar  bears  and  migratory 
birds.  North  of  Lat.  81°,  the  snow  bore  numberless  fresh 
tracks  of  foxes,  but  though  their  footmarks  were  imprinted 
on  the  snow  beyond  the  possibility  of  mistake,  we  never  saw 
one.  Once  we  found  their  excrements,  and  on  Hohenlohe 
Island  those  of  an  Arctic  hare.  The  scanty  vegetation  forbade 
the  presence  of  the  reindeer  and  musk-ox.  It  is  not,  how- 
ever, impossible  that  there  may  be  reindeer  in  the  more 


LIPARIS   GELAT1NOSUS. 


westerly  parts  of  the  country,  which  we  did  not  visit.  The 
character  of  that  particular  region  approximates  to  that  of 
King  Karl's  Land  and  Spkzbergen,  on  the  pastures  of 
which  herds  of  these  animals  live  and  thrive. 

1 8.  Of  the    great    marine    Mammalia,  seals    only    (Phoca 
groenlandica    and   Phoca    barbatd]    abounded ;    although    we 
saw  some  White  Whales.     Walruses  we  saw  twice,  but  not 
close  to  the  shore ;  it  is,  however,  probable  that  the  absence 
of  open  water   prevented    us  from  seeing  the  walrus  nearer 
the  shore,  for  the  character  of  the  sea-bottom  would  'present 
no  obstacle  to  its  existence. 

19.  Of   fish   we  saw  only  the  species  Liparis  gelatinosus 
(Pallas)  and  a  kind  of  cod  (Gadus],  which  were  taken  with  the 
drag-net. 

20.  The    birds,  which    we    found  in    the    region    between 
Novaya  Zemlya  and  Franz-Josef  Land  were  of  the  following 
species  : — the  long-tailed  Robber  Gull  (Lestris,  K.)  ;  the  black 


vi.]      DESCRIPTION  OF  KAISER  FRANZ-JOSEF  LAND.      267 

Robber  Gull  without  the  long  tail-feathers  ;  the  Burgomaster 
Gull  (Larus  Glaucus,  B.) ;  the  Ice  or  Ivory  Gull  (Larus 
eburneus)  ;  the  Kittiwake  (Rissa  tridactyla,  L.) ;  the  Sea- 
swallow  (Sterna  macrura,  N.)  ;  the  Arctic  Petrel  or  Malle- 
moke  (Procellaria  glacialis] ;  Ross's  Gull  (Rhotostetia  rosed) : 
two  species  of  Auks  (Uria  arra,  P.,  and  Uria  mandtii,  L.)  ; 
the  Greenland  Dove  (Grylle  columba,  Bp.) ;  the  Rotge 
(Mergiilus  alle,  V.)  ;  the  Lumme  (Mormon  arcticus) ;  the 
Eider-duck  (Somateria  mollisima,  L.)  ;  the  Snowy  Owl  (Strix 
nivea) ;  the  Iceland  Knot  (Tringa  camttus)  ;  the  Snow-bunting 
(Plectrophanes  nivalis,  M.).  Most  of  these  occurred  also  on 
the  coasts  of  Franz-Josef  Land. 

21.  We  can  here  only  allude  generally  to  those  forms  of 
animal  life  which  were  taken  by  the  drag-net  on  the  south  of 
Franz-Josef  "Land,  and  brought  to  Europe  in  the  collection  of 
Dr.  Kepes,  and  of  which  I  made  seventy-two  drawings.  To 
Professor  Heller,  of  Innspruck,  and  Professor  Marenzeller,  of 
Vienna,  the  expedition  is  indebted  for  the  naming  and  arrange- 
ment of  those  specimens,  and  while  I  refer  my  readers  to 
their  fuller  account  in  the  Mittheihmgen  of  the  Imperial 
Academy  of  Sciences  of  Vienna,  I  limit  myself  here  to  a 
few  of  the  results  of  their  observations.  The  investigation 
of  the  invertebrate  Fauna  of  the  sea  through  which  we  passed 
was  necessarily  limited  from  the  moment  that  the  course 
of  the  Tegetthoff  ceased  to  be  under  our  control.  We  had, 
in  the  first  place,  no  zoologist  on  board,  and  from  the  drifting 
ship  nothing  more  could  be  done  than  letting  down  the  net 
almost  daily  during  the  weeks  of  summer — which  Lieutenant 
Weyprecht  did— and  dragging  it  for  some  hours.  The  greater 
part  of  the  animals  so  taken  were  immediately  sketched  by 
me,  in  order  that,  in  the  event  of  the  loss  of  the  original 
objects,  some  sort  of  representation  of  the  animal  world  of  a 
region  never  before  investigated  might  be  preserved.  The 
issue  justified  a  caution  which  must  always  be  kept  in  view  in 
Polar  expeditions. 

Of  the  abundant  shrimp-family  of  the  Arctic  seas  there 
are  four  species  among  the  collections  we  formed,  namely  : — 
Hippolyte  payeri,  Heller,  n.  sp.,  Hippolyte  turgida  (Kroyer), 
Hippolyte  polaris  (Sabine),  and  Hippolyte  borcalis  (Owen). 
The  Hippolyte  payer i  was  found  at  the  depth  of  247  metres, 


268 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


and  was  of  a  beautiful  pink  colour  and  had  blue-black  eyes. 
There  were  found  besides :  Crangou  boreas  and  Pandalus 
borealis  (Kroyer). 

The  group  of  Amphipoda  was,  comparatively,  largely 
represented  among  the  Crustacea  of  the  Arctic  waters ;  we 
often  called  these  Floh-krebse — flea-crabs — because  many  of 
them  used  their  hind  legs  to  hop  along.  Eleven  species  of 
this  genus  were  brought  home  in  our  collections  ;  among  these 


HIPPOLYTE  PAYE'RI. 

were  A  mathillopsis  spinigera,  a  new  species,  Cle'ippides  quadri- 
cuspis,  also  a  new  species,  both  described  by  Professor  Heller ; 
Acanthozone  hystrix  (Owen),  &c.  The  group — Isopoda — is 
represented  by  the  interesting  Munnopsis  typica  (Sars),  the 
Idothea  sabini  (Kroyer),  and  by  a  new  variety,  ParantJiura 
arctica. 


HYALONEMA    LONGISSIMUM. 


Of  the  group  Pycnogonida,  our  collection  contained  three 
varieties,  of  which  two  are  new. 

Sponges  were  common  ;  but  we  were  obliged  to  leave 
behind  the  specimens  of  the  larger  kinds  on  account  of  the 
room  they  took  up.  Among  the  silicious  sponges,  those  of 
the  genus  Hyalonema  were  the  largest  in  size,  and  included 
the  forms  described  as  Hyalonema  boreale  (Loven),  and  Hyalo- 


VI.]      DESCRIPTION  OF  KAISER  FRANZ-JOSEF  LAND.      269 

nema  longissimum  (Sars).  There  was  one  specimen  of  the 
horny  sponge,  so  rare  in  those  parts.  The  drag-net  often 
brought  up  Actinia,  Bryareum  grandiflorum  (Sars),  and 
June  2.  1873,  from  a  depth  of  no  fathoms,  a  specimen  of 
the  extremely  rare  Umbellula  described  by  Mytius  and  Ellis, 
1753.  Since  that  date  this  animal  had  been  lost  sight  of, 


DMBELLULA. 


until  it  was  found  again  by  the  Swedes — Gladans  expedition 
1871 — in  Baffin's  Bay,  and  by  the  Challenger,  1873,  between 
Portugal  and  Madeira  and  between  Prince  Edward's  Island 
and  Kerguelen's  Land.  It  may  be  assumed  that  our  Um- 
bellula is  identical  with  the  form  first  described,  1758,  by 
Linnaeus  as  I  sis  encrinus.  I  regret  to  say  that  this,  the  most 


270 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP.  vr. 


interesting  of  all  the  objects  we  had  collected,  was  left  behind 
in  the  Tegetthoff.  The  sketch  of  it  made  from  life  will 
facilitate  a  comparison  with  the  forms  known  in  other  regions 
and  variously  named. 


KORETHRASTES    HISPIDUS. 


Hydroid  polypes,  widely  distributed  in  several  varieties  in 
the  Atlantic  Ocean, — Asferidaand  Ophiuridce,  the  Korethrastes 
hispidus  ( Wy v.  Thomson),  a  new  variety  discovered  by  the 
Porcupine  expedition  between  the  Faroe  and  Shetland  islands, 
Crinoida,  represented  by  two  species  never  before  found  so 
far  north,  and  several  Holothurice,  were  also  among  the 


NEPHTHYS   LONGISETOSA. 


acquisitions  brought  home.  Our  collection  was  rich  in 
Annelides,  containing  seven-and-twenty  varieties  found  in 
Greenland  and  Spitzbergen.  Fourteen  varieties  of  Bryozoa 
were  found,  and  single  specimens  of  Turbellaria  and  Gephyrea. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE   SECOND   SLEDGE  EXPEDITION. — AUSTRIA  SOUND. 

I.  THE  first  sledge  journey  enabled  me  to  draw  up  a  plan 
for  a  more  extended  expedition  towards  the  north.  It  was 
not  only  a  cherished  scheme  of  my  own,  but  it  became  also 
the  dominating  interest  on  board  the  Tegetthoff,  although  the 
other  scientific  investigations  were  carried  on  uninterruptedly. 
Weyprecht  and  Brosch  continued  with  admirable  perseverance 
the  laborious  observation  of  the  Magnetic  Constants,  and 
measured  on  the  ice  close  to  the  ship  a  base  of  2170*8  metres, 
which  served  for  all  my  trigonometrical  surveys.  The 
meteorological  observations  also  were  .carried  on  with  the 
usual  regularity. 

2.  For  some  days  the  weather  had  been  bad  ;  its  increas- 
ingly stormy  character  excited  our  fears,  lest  the  ice  should 
break  up  and  the  floe  drift  away  with  the  ship.  The  danger 
of  leaving  her,  in  order  to  explore  the  extent  of  the  new 
country,  increased  also  with  the  longer  duration  of  our  pro- 
posed second  journey.  We  were  convinced,  too,  that  the  sea 
within  a  few  days  had  broken  up  the  ice  almost  as  far  as 
Wilczek  Island,  and  a  heavy  water-sky  was  seen  in  the  south 
at  no  great  distance  from  us.  Discoveries  of  importance 
could  only  be  expected  from  an  expedition  of  a  month's 
duration.  But  withal  the  venture  must  be  made,  and  leaving 
the  dangers  and  perils  to  the  chances  of  the  future,  I  gathered 
together  the  picked  men  who  were  to  accompany  me,  to  lay 
before  them  my  plans.  I  explained  to  them  my  design  of 
penetrating  in  a  northerly  direction  as  far  as  possible,  and  I 
put  before  them  the  danger  of  our  being  cut  off  from  the  ship. 
But  while  I  showed  the  perils,  I  stimulated  them  also  by  the 


272  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

hope  of  reward.  If  the  eighty-first  degree  of  latitude  were 
reached,  I  guaranteed  to  them  the  sum  of  £100  ;  if  we  attained 
the  eighty-second  degree,  £250  ;  and  I  declared  that  merit, 
and  merit  alone,  should  regulate  the  distribution  of  these 
sums.  In  order  to  make  sure  of  reticence  on  the  part  of  my 
company  and  thus  obviate  ill-feeling  among  the  rest  of  the 
crew,  which  might  easily  have  been  called  forth  by  this  appa- 
rent preference,  they  were  told  that  the  rewards  would  be 
forfeited,  if  any  of  those  who  stayed  behind  in  the  ship  should 
hear  of  these  rewards.  The  assembled  company  agreed  also 
to  my  request  never  to  mention  dangers  during  the  journey, 
and,  in  the  event  of  our  not  finding  the  ship  on  our  return,  to 
take  the  whole  blame  of  such  an  issue  on  our  own  shoulders. 
With  regard  to  the  rewards,  I  must  add  that  never  was  a 
secret  better  kept.  Immediately  began  on  board  a  packing, 
a  tailoring,  a  preparation  as  if  for  a  campaign,  and  under  the 
tent-roof  of  the  ship  the  rusty  runners  of  the  sledges  were 
polished,  till  they  were  as  smooth  as  glass. 

3.  Before  we  started,  there  was  an  interesting  interruption 
in  the  monotony  of  our  lives,  occasioned  by  a  family  of  bears. 
While  we  were  absent  in  our  first  journey  a  bear  had  been 
shot  from  the  ship,  and  little  Pekel  had  been  wounded  in  the 
neck.  On  the  iQth  of  March  another  bear  came  close  to  us, 
which  was  scared  away  after  some  unsuccessful  shots  had 
been  fired  at  it.  Three  days  afterwards  a  she-bear  appeared 
accompanied  by  her  two  cubs,  of  a  darker  colour  than  their 
mother,  rolling  on  after  her.  It  was  exceedingly  interesting 
to  watch  the  actions  of  this  family.  The  mother  frequently 
stopped  and  snuffed  the  air  with  uplifted  snout  ;  then  she 
would  lick  her  cubs,  who  fondly  crept  up  to  their 
mother,  behaving  exactly  like  young  poodles,  which  they  also 
resembled  in  size.  Six  shots  were  fired  at  seventy  paces 
distance,  and  the  mother-bear,  after  running  for  about  forty 
paces,  fell  dead.  Amazed  at  the  reports  of  the  rifles  and  the 
actions  of  their  mother,  the  little  bears  sat  as  if  they  were 
rooted  in  the  snow,  and  looked  with  astonishment  at  the  dark 
forms  which  rushed  out  from  the  ship.  One  of  them  suffered 
itself  to  be  shaken  by  Pekel ;  and  only  when  they  were  seized 
by  the  nape  of  the  neck  and  carried  on  board  did  they  seem 
to  entertain  the  least  surmise  of  mischief.  At  first  they  were 


VIL]  SECOND  SLEDGE  EXPEDITION.— AUSTRIA  SOUND.  273 

shut  up  separately  in  casks  set  on  their  end,  and  growled  long 
and  impatiently  till  they  were  put  together  in  the  same  cask. 
Sumbu  alone  was  slow  to  understand  our  suddenly-excited 
pity  for  his  hereditary  foes,  and  scratched  and  barked  at  the 
cask  for  hours  together,  while  the  cubs  growled  and  threatened 
retaliation  with  their  little  paws.  After  looking  at  this  for 
some  time,  Gillis  was  moved  to  side  with  the  bears,  and  a 
battle  ensued  between  him  and  Sumbu,  in  which  the  latter 
got  the  worst  of  it.  The  little  animals  afforded  us  much 
amusement,  and  the  crew  were  seriously  considering  the  feasi- 
bility of  training  them  to  draw  in  the  sledge,  in  the  meditated 
return  expedition  to  Europe.  They  ate  bread,  sauerkraut, 


THE    DOGS    DIFFER    AS   TO    THE   TREATMENT    OF    YOUNG   BEARS. 

bacon — in  short,  everything  that  was  given  them.  One 
morning,  however,  the  little  rascals  eluded  the  eye  of  the 
watch  and  got  away.  They  were  immediately  caught  and 
killed,  and  appeared  roasted  on  our  dinner-table. 

4.  On  the  25th  of  March  our  preparations  for  the  extended 
journey  northwards  were  brought  to  an  end.  The  sledge  with 
its  load  weighed  about  14  cwt. 


274  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

Ibs. 

The  large  sledge          *. 150 

The  dog  sledge             .         .         .         .          .         .          .          .         .  37 

The  provisions,  including  packing 620 

The  tent,  sleeping  bags,  tent-poles,  alpine  stocks          .         .         .  320 

Alcohol  and  rum 128 

Fur  coats  and  fur  gloves 140 

Instruments,    rifles,  ammunition,    shovel,    two   cooking-machines, 

drag-ropes,  dog-tent,  &c.          .         . 170 

Total         .     1565 

Each  of  the  four  sacks  of  provisions — calculated  for  seven 
days  and  seven  men — contained  5 1  Ibs.  of  boiled  beef,  48  Ibs. 
of  bread,  8  Ibs.  of  pemmican,  7  Ibs.  of  bacon,  2  Ibs.  of  extract 
of  meat,  4  Ibs.  of  condensed  milk,  2  Ibs.  of  coffee,  4  Ibs.  of 
chocolate,  7  Ibs.  of  rice,  3  Ibs.  of  grits,  I  Ib.  of  salt  and  pepper, 
2  Ibs.  of  peas-sausage,  4  Ibs.  of  sugar,  besides  a  reserve  bag 
with  20  Ibs.  of  bread.  We  took  boiled  beef  for  the  dogs. 
We  counted  also  on  the  produce  of  our  guns  as  a  considerable 
supplement  both  for  ourselves  and  them. 

5.  The  sledge  party  consisted  of  myself,  Orel,  Klotz  and 
Haller,  and  of  three  sailors,  Zaninovich,  Sussich,  and  Lukino- 
vich  ;  and  we  had  with  us  three  dogs,  Jubinal,  Torossy,  and 
Sumbu,  and  men  and  dogs  together  dragged  the  large  sledge. 
The  duties  were  thus  divided :  Zaninovich  managed  the 
packing  and  the  giving  out  of  the  spirit  and  rum,  Haller 
served  out  the  provisions,  Klotz  attended  to  the  dogs  and  the 
arms,  Sussich  was  responsible  for  keeping  everything  in  work- 
ing order,  and  at  night  Lukinovich  acted  as  a  wind-protector 
close  to  the  door  of  the  tent.  We  started  on  the  morning  of 
the  26th  of  March  with  the  thermometer  6°  F.  below  zero, 
and  amid  snow  driving  from  the  north-west.  For  some 
distance  we  were  accompanied  by  Weyprecht  and  the  rest  of 
the  crew.  We  had  scarcely  gone  a  thousand  paces  from  the 
ship,  before  the  snow  began  to  drive  to  such  an  extent,  that 
we  could  scarcely  see  our  comrades  close  to  us  and  keep 
together.  As  it  was  impossible  to  go  on  until  the  storm  laid, 
we  preferred,  instead  of  returning  to  the  Tegetthoff,  which 
would  have  been  the  simpler  course,  to  erect  the  tent  out  of 
sight  of  the  ship  behind  some  ice-hummocks,  and  pass  twenty- 
four  hours  in  it.  Our  only  employment  except  sleeping  was 
to  thaw  the  snow,  which  filled  our  clothes  and  especially  our 


VII.]  SECOND  SLEDGE  EXPEDITION.— AUSTRIA  SOUND.  275 

pockets.  On  the  27th  of  March  (the  thermometer  varying 
between  2°  and  22°  F.  below  zero)  we  continued  our  journey 
amid  a  slight  fall  of  snow,  and  made  an  early  start,  in  order 
that  our  halt  of  yesterday  should  remain  unknown  to  the 
crew  of  the  ship.  When  we  reached  the  south-eastern  point 
of  Wilczek  Island  we  lost  sight  of  the  ship,  and  the  driving 
snow  with  a  falling  thermometer  increased  to  such  an  extent, 
that  Sussich's  hands  were  frost-bitten,  and  we  were  compelled 
to  halt  for  an  hour  to  rub  them  with  snow.  Starting  again, 
we  all  ran  the  risk  of  having  our  faces  frost-bitten,  meeting  as 
we  did  a  strong  wind.  The  heavily-laden  sledge,  too,  com- 
pelled us  to  make  such  exertions  that  our  faces  were  bathed 
in  perspiration.  On  the  28th  of  March  the  wind  fell  to  a 
calm,  and  as  we  passed  over  the  Sound  between  Salm  and 
Wilczek  Islands  in  a  north-westerly  direction  we  advanced  at 
the  rate  of  eighty  paces  a  minute.  The  track,  which  we 
followed,  consisted  partly  of  bay-ice  a  year  old  and  partly  of 
old  floes,  these  together  forming  a  continuous  surface,  here 
and  there  broken  by  barriers  of  hummocks,  miles  in  length, 
due  to  ice-pressures.  After  we  had  passed  the  headlands 
south-west  of  Salm  Island,  we  came  in  sight  of  the  Wiillers- 
dorf  mountains,  which  we  had  hitherto  seen  only  from  a  great 
distance,  hoping  from  their  summits  to  determine  the  route 
which  we  should  take  northwards. 

6.  At  the  distance  of  some  miles  right  ahead  of  us  lay 
several  rocky  islands,  with  their  outlines  scarcely  discernible 
owing  to  the  dull  thick  state  of  the  atmosphere  ;  but  as  they 
lay  in  the  direction  of  our  course,  we  made  for  them.  We 
now  passed  some  icebergs  and  saw  on  their  southern  sides 
the  first  signs  of  the  process  of  liquefaction — new  icicles.  By 
and  by  a  wind  from  the  south-west  set  in,  raising  the  temper- 
ature gradually  to  6°  F.  and  bringing  with  it  fogs  and  then 
heavy  snow-storms.  Covered  with  snow  and  running  before 
the  wind  with  a  large  sledge-sail  set,  we  came  under  the 
glacier-walls  of  Salm  Island,  among  icebergs  frozen  fast 
together,  trudging  along  through  wind  and  whirling  snow. 
Occasionally  the  wind  was  so  strong,  that  the  sail  alone 
sufficed  to  impel  the  heavy  sledge,  while  a  man  in  front, 
guided  by  a  whistle  from  those  behind,  kept  it  in  its  proper 
course.  After  a  march  of  sixteen  hours,  the  wind  having 


276  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

increased  to  a  storm,  which  rendered  it  impossible  to  keep  the 
track,  we  determined  to  halt.  Our  clothes  appeared  to  consist 
of  nothing  but  snow,  our  eyes  were  iced  up,  and  our  strength 
exhausted.  In  great  haste  we  erected  trie  tent  and  took  refuge 
within  it ;  but  our  misery  now  properly  began.  One  scraped 
the  thawing  snow  from  the  clothes  of  another,  or  turned  inside- 
out  the  pockets  of  his  own  trousers,  filled  with  dissolving  snow- 
balls. At  last  the  cooking-machine  was  lighted,  and  we  began  to 
steam,  and  heartily  wished  that  our  miseries  had  arisen  from  cold 
instead  of  moisture.  The  temperature  in  the  tent  rose  at  the 
distance  of  three  feet  from  the  flame  to  80°  R,  and  twenty 
minutes  after  the  production  of  this  artificial  heat  it  fell  seven 
degrees  below  zero.  Early  in  the  morning  of  the  2Qth  of 
March  (Palm  Sunday)  the  wind  abated  and  the  temperature 
rose  to  24-5°  F.,  so  that  it  began  to  rain  in  the  tent  as  we  were 
preparing  our  breakfast.  During  the  march  of  that  day  we 
ascended  the  rocky  heights  of  Koldewey  Island,  at  the  foot  of 
which  we  had  put  up  the  tent  for  the  purpose  of  surveying- 
These  rocks  consisted  of  Dolerite,  over-spread  with  a  close 
network  of  Lichens  (Cetraria  nivalis]  and  in  the.  clefts  we 
found  Silene  acaulis. 

7.  From  the  summit  of  this  island  we  suddenly  beheld,  in 
the  field  of  view  of  the  telescope  of  the  theodolite,  a  bear, 
which  had  seized  Torossy  and  severely  wounded  him.  But 
almost  immediately  again  the  bear  disappeared  in  the  snow,  and 
when  we  came  to  "the  place  of  his  disappearance,  we  dis- 
covered the  winter  retreat  of  a  family  of  bears.  It  was  a 
cavity  hollowed  out  in  a  mass  of  snow  lying  under  a  rocky 
wall.  The  bear  had  shown  herself  only  once,  but  resisted  all 
our  efforts  to  seduce  her  to  leave  the  shelter  she  had  chosen, 
nor  had  we  any  special  desire  to  creep  on  all  fours  into  the 
narrow  dark  habitation.  Sumbu  only  was  bold  enough  to 
follow  her,  but  he  too  saw  things  which  led  him  to  return  very 
quickly.  From  the  snow  which  had  been  thrown  up  at  the 
entrance  of  this  hole,  we  inferred  that  this  had  been  the  work 
of  the  bear  in  her  efforts  to  close  the  approach  to  her  abode. 
It  was  the  first  time  that  we  came  upon  a  family  of  bears  in  their 
winter  quarters,  or  had  the  chance  of  adding  anything  to  our 
scanty  knowledge  as  to  the  winter  sleep  of  those  animals. 
Middendorff  does  not  admit -that  they  sleep  during  the  winter  ; 


vii. J  SECOND  SLFDGE  EXPEDITION.— AUSTRIA  SOUND.  277 

he  considers  the  bear  far  too  lean  to  be  able  to  do  so.  Accord- 
ing to  Dr.  Richardson  it  is  only  pregnant  females  who  hiber- 
nate in  a  snow-hole,  while  the  males  roam  over  the  Arctic  seas 
in  search  of  places  free  from  ice. 

8.  As  we  advanced  further,  we  went  round  Schonau  Island1 
so  remarkable  for  its  columnar  structure  and  environed  by  ice 
which  had  been  raised  up  by  pressure.  In  a  cleft  of  its  pre- 
cipitous rocky  walls  we  buried  a  depot  of  provisions  and  a 
supply  of  alcohol  for  two  days,  together  with  some  articles  of 
clothing,  covering  them  up  with  four  feet  of  snow.  We  could 
not,  however,  conceal  from  ourselves  the  danger  of  placing  a 
depot  within  sight  of  a  bear's  hole,  and  greatly  deplored  that 


THE  WINTER  HOLE  OF  A  BEAR. 


we  were  not  able,  like  the  fox  in  the  fable,  to  obliterate  the 
marks  of  our  footsteps.  Towards  evening  the  temperature 
fell  to  — io°R,  and  the  tent  was  frozen  as  stiff  as  a  board.  On 
the  3<Dth  of  March  the  temperature  fell  to  —  22°  R,  and  a 
strong  north  wind  was  blowing  as  we  came  out  of  the  tent, 
and«curling  billows  of  snow,  reddened  by  the  rising  sun,  rolled 
round  us,  hiding  from  us  at  last  even  the  sun  himself.  A  march 
in  the  teeth  of  a  wind  at  so  low  a  temperature  is  quite  useless 
and  only  exposes  to  the  great  danger  of  frost-bite.  This  was 
now  clearly  seen  when,  the  tent  being  taken  down  as  usual 
immediately  after  breakfast,  the  laggards,  imperfectly  clad, 
1  Schonau,  near  Teplitz  in  Bohemia,  my  birthplace. 


278  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  vil. 

faced  the  wild  weather.  One  was  binding  a  stocking  round 
his  face  with  his  braces,  because  his  frozen  fingers  would 
not  permit  him  to  button  on  his  nose-band  and  wind-guard  ; 
another  had  put  on  reindeer  shoes  instead  of  boots  after  a 
vain  attempt  to  thaw  them  ;  a  third  had  put  on  the  wrong 
boot,  and  I  myself  was  obliged  to  wind  a  long  rope  round  my 
body,  because  I  was  unable  to  fasten  my  coat.  Such  a  state 
of  things  is  opposed  to  order  and  safety,  and  may  degenerate 
into  serious  mischief.  There  was  nothing  for  it  therefore  but 
to  set  up  the  tent  again  and  to  get.  back  into  our  sleeping-bag. 
'But  the  damp  tent  was  frozen  hard,  and  we  felt  much  as  if  we 
were  lying  between  two  plates  of  cold  metal.  It  would 
be  difficult  to  say  whether  we  suffered  more  from  cold  than- 
from  vexation.  Zaninovich  spread  the  sail  over  us,  and 
shovelled  down  the  snow  from  the  walls  of  the  tent ; — who 
could  be  so  serviceable  as  this  comrade  of  ours,  who  on  every 
occasion  displayed  such  hardihood  against  cold  ?  Orel  and  I 
made  vain  attempts  to  shorten  the  time  by  reading  a  volume 
of  L'essing  which  we  had  brought  with  us ;  but  we  soon 
renounced  the  effort,  finding  that  we  could  not  fix  our  atten- 
tion in  such  a  situation.  We  had  some  compensation,  however, 
in  the  amusement  of  listening  to  the  Dalmatians  learning  to 
speak  German  with  Klotz,  who  was  far  from  the  weakness 
of  uttering  a  single  word  in  Italian.  As  usual,  when  the 
weather  was  bad,  the  dogs  gathered  close  to  the  wind-sheltered 
side  of  our  tent.  Sumbu  forcing  himself  in  among  us  had  to 
be  driven  out,  for  he  growled  if  he  had  the  faintest  suspicion 
that  we  meant  to  move  or  to  smoke ;  but  failing  to  make 
himself  comfortable  among  the  other  dogs,  he  avenged  himself 
by  again  rushing  in  among  us,  shaking  the  snow  from  his  coat, 
and  forced  us  to  admit  him. 

9.  On  the  3  ist  of  March,  the  weather  having  cleared,  we 
continued  our  journey  northwards,  halting  as  usual  at  noon 
to  refresh  ourselves  with  soup.  We  measured  the  meridian 
altitude  of  the  sun  with  a  theodolite,  and  surveyed  and 
sketched  our  surroundings.  -  When  we  came  to  80°  16'  N.L. 
we  found  a  broad  barrier  of  hummocks  piled  one  upon 
another.  This  was  succeeded  by  older  ice,  whose  undulating 
surface  was  broken  by  numerous  icebergs  and  high  black 
basaltic  cliffs.  Here  ended  the  possibility  of  determining  the 


28o 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


route  to  be  taken  ;  for  although  there  was  an  opening 
between  Cape  Frankfurt  and  the  Wiillersdorf  mountains,  we 
could  not  enter  it,  until  we  ascertained  whether  it  led  north- 
wards. In  order  to  settle  this  point  Haller  and  I  left  the 
sledge  and  made.a  forced  march  to  Cape  Frankfurt,  whence 
we  hoped  to  discover  the  direction  of  our  course.  Meanwhile 
Orel  and  the  rest  of  the  party  dragged  the  sledge  with  great 
exertions  between  hummocks  and  icebergs  towards  the  north- 
east. Cape  Frankfurt  is  a  promontory  of  Hall  Island,  2,000 
feet  high  and  surrounded  with  glaciers.  The  small  difference 
of  level  in  the  sea-ice  at  the  base  of  its  cliffs  showed  that  the 
tide  did  not  rise  high.  Its  glaciers  flowed  towards  Markham 
Sound  and  Nordenskjold  fiord.  When  we  arrived  at  the 


CAPE    FRANKFURT,    AUSTRIA   SOUND,    AND   THE   WULLERSDORF   MOUNTAINS. 

summit  everything  lay  steeped  in  the  rosy  mists  of  evening. 
Flocks  of  birds  flew  from  its  massive  basaltic  crown,  and  as  it 
was  evident  that  they  had  not  come  there  to  breed,  we  inferred 
that  open  water  was  not  far  off. 

10.  Our  attention  was  directed,  however,  especially  to  the 
configuration  of  the  country,  and  great  was  our  delight  when 
we  beheld  beneath  us  a  broad  inlet,  which  promised  to  be  of  con- 
siderable extent  and  to  run  towards  the  north.  This  inlet  was 
covered  with  icebergs  and  could  be  traced  up  to  the  faint  out- 
lines of  a  distant  promontory  (Cape  Tyrol).  It  now  appeared 
certain,  that  we  could  reach  the  eighty-first  degree  of  latitude 
on  an  ice-covered  sea,  and  the  measurement  of  some  angles 
furnished  us  with  a  provisional  guidance  for  penetrating  into 


vii.]  SECOND  SLEDGE  EXPEDITION.— AUSTRIA  SOUND.  281 

these  new  regions.  The  coasts  of  Wilczek  Land  appeared 
to  run  in  a  northerly  direction,  and  then  to  trend  gradually  to 
the  north-east.  At  a  great  distance  below  us  we  saw  a  dark 
point  moving  over  the  dimly-seen  plain  of  sea-ice.  Its 
advance  was  discernible  only  when  for  a  short  time  it  dis- 
appeared behind  an  iceberg,  and  again  reappeared.  It  was 
Orel  with  the  large  sledge  ;  but  neither  the  snowy  mountains 
bathed  in  carmine  light,  which  surrounded  our  point  of  view 
with  picturesque  effect,  nor  the  crimson  veil  spread  over  them, 
nor  the  profound  solitude  of  the  wastes  that  lay  around  us, 
could  so  rivet  our  attention  as  that  little  point  in  which  lodged 
forces  apparently  so  insignificant,  but  yet  made  potent  by 
human  will.  With  pain  and  toil  we  descended  the  mountain 
in  our  canvas  boots  between  steep  precipices  of  ice,  and 
pressed  on  for  six  miles  in  the  rapidly-waning  light  over  hum- 
mocky-ice  to  rejoin  our  companions,  whose  position  we  had 
marked  by  the  stars,  from  the  elevation  we  had  ascended. 
We  reached  our  friends  before  midnight  and  our  news  excited 
great  joy. 

II.  On  the  ist  of  April  (the  thermometer  marking  -20°  F.) 
we  penetrated  by  Cape  Hansa  into  the  newly-discovered 
passage,  which  was  covered  with  heavy  ice ;  I  called  it  Austria 
Sound.  The  nearer  we  approached  the  coast  of  Wilczek 
Land,  the  more  unquestionable  did  it  appear  that  the  Wiil- 
lersdorf  mountains  extended  far  into  the  interior;  but  it 
would  have  cost  more  time  than  the  attempt  was  worth  to 
ascend  them.  The  latit?ide  taken  at  noon  was  80°  22'. 
Nothing  can1  be  more  exciting  than  the  discovery  of  new 
countries.  The  combining  faculty  never  tires  in  tracing  their 
configuration,  and  the  fancy  is  restlessly  busy  in  filling  up . 
the  gaps  of  what  is  as  yet  unseen,  and  though  the  next  step 
may  destroy  its  illusions,  it  is  ever  prone  to  indulge  in 
fresh  ones.  Herein  lies  the  great  charm  of  sledge  expedi- 
tions, as  compared  with  the  tiresome  monotony  of  life  on 
board  ship — a  charm  which  is  only  then  diminished  when  we 
have  to  wander  for  days  over  wastes  of  snow,  with  the  coasts 
at  such  a  distance,  that  they  do  not  change  sufficiently 
rapidly,  or  leave  scope  for  indulging  in  surmises  and  fancies 
of  what  is  coming.  The  discomforts  incident  to  this  mode  of 
travelling  are  in  this  case  doubly  felt.  The  sledge  is  dragged 
20 


282  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP 

with  great  difficulty  in  the  hours  of  the  early  morning,  for 
the  hard  edges  of  the  snow  crystals  have  not  yet  felt  the 
smoothing  effects  of  evaporation  under  the  power  of  the  sun. 
The  goal  itself  appears  as  if  it  were  never  to  be  reached, 
because  the  limited  horizon  of  the  travellers  constantly 
retreats.  Thirst  and  languor  then  set  in.  The  small  quantity 
of  water  which  we  were  able  to  prepare  during  the  march 
had  no  more  effect  than  a  drop  on  a  plate  of  hot  iron.  Klotz 
felt  unwell  to-day,  and  cured  himself  by  swallowing  his 
ration  of  rum  at  one  gulp.  Even  the  dogs .  seemed  languid, 
and  crept  along  with  drooping  heads  and  their  tails  between 
their  legs. 

12.  The  land  on  our  right  was  a  monotonous   waste  of 
ridges  and  terraces  of  parallel  raised  beaches,  partially  covered 
with  snow.     Following  its  line  as  we  marched  onwards,  we 
passed  iceberg  after  iceberg.     Towards  evening   I   ascended 
one  of  these,  and  made  the  joyful  discovery  that   Austria 
Sound  stretched  in  a  northerly  direction  at  least  as  far  as  a 
cape — afterwards  called   Cape  Tyrol.     In  the  midst  of  my 
observations  Orel  called  to  me  from  below  that  a  bear  was 
coming  near  us.     We  awaited  his  approach  with  the  greed 
of  cannibals,  for  his  flesh  would  be  priceless  while  we  were 
making  such  great  exertions  and   had  only  the  insufficient 
nourishment  of  boiled  beef.     I  promised  Haller  and   Klotz 
the  bear-money  of  30   gulden,  usual   in   Tyrol,   if  the  bear 
should  be  bagged.     The  animal  received  three  shots  at  the 
same  moment  and  at  first  stood  stock  still,  but  then  began  to 
drag  himself  slowly  off     We  rushed  after  him,  and  to  save 
our  cartridges  struck  him  with  the  butts  of  our  rifles,  and 
finished  him  by  thrusting  our  long  knives  into  his  body.     We 
appropriated  5olbs.  of  his  flesh  to  our  own  use,  and  gave  the 
rest  of  his  carcase  to  the  dogs,  and  deposited  50  Ibs.  of  boiled 
beef  on  the  iceberg,  close  by  which  w~  erected  our  tent. 

13.  On  the  2nd  of  April  (the  thermometer  marking— n  F.) 
we  again  started  with  renewed  vigour,  though  in  the  face  of 
a  strong  north  wind.     I  myself  left  the  sledge  in  order  to 
examine  the  raised  beach  for  some  distance.    .  It  was  for  the 
most  part  bare  of  snow,  and  exhibited  laminse  of  brown-coal 
sandstone  amid  the  Dolerite.    Close  beside  the  scanty  remains 
of  some  drift-wood,  I  was  surprised  to  find  a  circle  of  large 


vii.]  SECOND  SLEDGE  EXPEDITION.— AUSTRIA  SOUND.  283 

stones  resembling  those  erections  which  I  had  seen  in  East 
Greenland  in  deserted  Eskimo  villages.  As,  however,  there 
were  no  other  marked  traces  of  former  settlements,  this  circle 
of  stones  was  no  doubt  something  accidental.  The  magnitude 
of  Franz-Josef  Land  seemed  to  grow  before  our  eyes,  as  we 
saw  the  broad  Markham  Sound  opening  up  towards  the  west, 
and  ranges  of  high  mountains  stretching  away  towards  Cape 
Tyrol.  The  coasts  abounded  in  fiords,  and  glaciers  were 
everywhere  to  be  seen.  Wilczek  Land  disappeared  under 
ice-streams,  and  only  reappeared  again  in  the  rocky  heights 
of  Cape  Heller  and  Cape  Schmarda,  opposite  Wiener-neustadt 
Island.  In  the  evening  we  reckoned  that  we  had  reached 
latitude  80°  42'. 

14.  On  the  3rd  of  April  (the  thermometer  standing  at 
—  9°  F.)  we  should  have  reached  Cape  Tyrol,  had  not  snow- 
storms from  the  south  kept  us  in  the  afternoon  in  our  tent :  a 
delay  with  which  Lukinovich  was  by  no  means  displeased,  for 
this  being  Good  Friday  he  had  counted  on  a  day  of  complete 
rest, — for  our  friend  Lukinovich  was  prone  to  turn  his  eyes  to 
heaven,  spoke  constantly  of  the  saints,  could  mention  their 
festivals  as  they  occurred  in  the  calendar  ;  but,  alas  !  was  a 
snow-eater,  and  could  march  not  a  whit  better  than  Falstaff. 
On  the  4th  of  April  the  temperature,  with  constant  driving 
storms  of  snow  from  the  south,  rose  from  -  4°  to  23°  F. ;  and 
the  snow  accumulated  to  such  an  extent  even  in  the  tent, 
that  it  had  to  be  shovelled  out.  It  was  towards  the  afternoon 
before  we  could  continue  our  march,  the  delay  made  being 
not  so  much  on  account  of  the  cold,  as  from  dread  of  the 
moisture.  Our  start  proved,  however,  useless,  for  the  snow 
began  to  drive  so  furiously,  that,  as  we  dragged,  those  behind 
could ,  scarcely  see  the  men  in  front.  We  again  travelled  by 
the  compass  and  used  our  sledge-sail ;  but  we  constantly 
deviated  from  the  right  course,  though  we  pressed  on,  passing 
Cape  Tyrol  without  seeing  it,  and  entered  an  unknown  region 
in  which  we  were  guided  by  mere  chance — expecting  every 
moment  to  stumble  on  a  fissure  in  the  ice  or  open  water. 
This  day  we  sustained  a  painful  loss — the  loss  of  my  dog 
Sumbu.  For  two  long  years  he  had  been  almost  our  only 
source  of  amusement  by  his  cunning  and  his  impudence. 
He  had  long  been  the  rival  of  the  frolicsome  Torossy,  in 


284 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


dragging  the  sledge  ;  and  it  was  often  almost  touching  to  see 
how  at  evening  he  would  sink  down  exhausted  in  the  snow, 
in  the  very  spot  where  he  was  unharnessed.  It  cannot  well 
detract  from  the  merit  of  such  services — and  after  all  they 
were  rendered  in  the  interests  of  science ! — that  they  were 
those  of  an  animal  and  sprang  from  attachment.1  To  this 
vigorous  lively  animal,  what  more  natural  than  that  he  should 
be  almost  beside  himself  if  in  one  of  these  vast  solitudes  he 


HOW   SUMBU   WAS    LOST. 


should  get  sight  of  a  living  creature  ?  So  it  happened  to-day. 
A  gull  flew  over  his  head,  and  Sumbu  burst  away  from  the 
sledge.  In  hot  pursuit  of  the  bird  he  disappeared  from  our 
sight  and  never  returned  again.  All  our  shouts  were  thrown 
away.  Our  track  was  soon  covered  over  by  the  drifting  snow, 
and  there  cannot  be  a  doubt  that  our  faithful  companion, 
after  wandering  about  for  days,  either  died  of  hunger  or  fell 
a  victim  to  a  bear. 

1  Sumbu  and  Pekel  were  my  own  dogs. 


VIL]  SECOND  SLEDGE  EXPEDITION.— AUSTRIA  SOUND.  285 

15.  April  5,  after  a  short  rest,  we  again  started  about  mid- 
night in  order  to  economize  our  time  (the  thermometer  being 
at  19°  F.).  The  weather  had  greatly  improved.  Klotz,  who 
was  the  first  to  step  out  of  the  tent,  startled  us  by  the  in- 
formation that  some  high  land  barred  our  further  progress. 
But  when  we  followed  him  into  the  open  air,  we  found  that 
Klotz1  had  looked  to  the  west  instead  of  to  the  north,  and  we 
discovered  the  true  state  of  things,  that  Zichy  Land  ran  on 
our  left  in  a  northerly  direction,  while  Wilczek  Land  trended 
towards  the  north-east.  We  pursued,  therefore,  our  course  on 
the  vast  icy  wastes,  over  which  hung  Cape  Easter  (81°  i'),  and 
Cape  Hellwald  shining  in  the  sun,  and  hoisted  the  flag  on  the 


CAPE  EASTER  AND  STERNEK  SOUND. 


sledge  to  celebrate  our  passage  of  the  eighty-first  degree  of 
north  latitude,  and  in  commemoration  of  Easter  Sunday. 

1 6.  During  our  march,  spying  us  at  a  great  distance,  a  bear 
approached  us  at  a  rapid  pace,  but  when  he  came  within  forty 
paces  he  fell,  receiving  three  bullets  in  his  head.  The  accom- 
panying illustration  shows  how  we  received  bears  when  they 
attacked  us  on  our  journey  ;  it  represents  also  the  fine  forms 
of  Cape  Tyrol  in  the  background.  A  few  hours  afterwards, 
we  observed  a  she-bear  about  400  yards  from  us,  apparently 
diligent  in  burrowing  in  the  snow  ;  but  as  soori  as  she  got 
wind  of  us  she  suddenly  turned,  reared  herself  on  her  hind 
legs,  and  began  to  snuff  the  air.  She  then  came  towards  us, 
but  as  she  advanced  she  rolled  herself  over  with  evident 


VII.]  SECOND  SLEDGE  EXPEDITION.— AUSTRIA  SOUND.  287 

pleasure  on  her  back  several  times,  then  pushed  on  with  her 
snout  and  belly  close  to  the  ground,  perfectly  unconscious  of 
the  three  rifles  which  were  levelled  at  her.  At  fifty  paces 
distance  we  fired,  and  brought  her  down.  We  immediately 
examined  the  place  where  we  had  seen  her  so  busy.  We  did 
not  find  poor  Sumbu,  as  we  half  expected,  but  a  partially- 
consumed  seal,  and  close  to  it  a  hole  in  the  ice,  into  which 
the  creature  no  doubt  would  plunge  when  danger  threatened  ; 
but  the  bear  had  been  sharper  and  .cleverer  than  the  seal,  and 
had  probably  seized  it  when  asleep  on  the  ice.  Bear-flesh  now 
formed  our  principal  food,  and  the  sledge  was  heavily  laden 


DINING   ON    BEARS     FLESH. 


with  it.  We  ate  it  both  raw  and  cooked,  and  when  the  flesh 
was  badly  cooked — especially  if  it  were  the  flesh  of  an  old 
bear — it  was  less  palatable  than  when  uncooked.  It  may  be 
tolerable  food  for  sea-gulls,  but  it  is  a  diet  hardly  fit  even  for 
devils  on  the  fast-days  of  the  infernal  regions.  Arctic  lands 
certainly  do  not  furnish  delicacies  to  gratify  a  refined  taste  ; 
the  best  things  they  have  to  offer  are  coarse  and  oily,  and  if 
ever  they  are  eaten  with  relish,  it  is  a  relish  which  comes  from 
hunger  alone.  The  desolate  shores  of  these  lands  are  truly 
the  very  home  of  hunger,  and  nowhere  else  are  the  calcula- 
tions of  travellers  so  much  influenced  and  determined  by  the 


288  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

stomach  and  its  needs.  Remains  or  fragments  are  unknown 
in  Arctic  regions.  The  dead  are  consumed  by  the  living,  and 
the  living  find  their  never-ceasing  occupation  in  the  toilsome 
search  for  food.  In  my  three  Arctic  expeditions,  I  very 
seldom  indeed  found  the  remains  of  animals,  never  the  re- 
mains of  a  bear  or  a  fox.  The  man  who  visits  these  wastes 
must  do  homage  to  the  principle  of  eating  everything,  and 
throwing  away  nothing.  Franklin  was  unsurpassed  in  this, 
but  I  believe  we  were  little  behind  him.  Franklin  and  his 
people  found  the  flesh  of  a  white  fox  as  pleasant  to  the  taste 
as  young  geese — a  proof  how  entirely  they  had  forgotten 
how  geese  taste.  They  preferred  foxes,  too,  to  lean  reindeer ; 
and  they  considered  the  flesh  of  a  grey  bear  exceedingly  pala- 
table, though  even  the  Eskimos  eat  it  only  in  dire  necessity. 
Reindeer  marrow,  even  raw,  was  to  them  a  great  delicacy, 
and  they  ate  animals  in  a  state  of  decomposition.  Barentz 
and  his  crew  were  very  modest  in  their  tastes ;  they  com- 
pared whale-flesh  to  beef,  and  foxes  to  rabbits,  as  articles  of 
diet ;  bears'  meat  they  utterly  detested.  Once  only  it  seems 
they  partook  of  the  liver  of  a  bear,  and  three  of  his  men 
became  exceedingly  ill  in  consequence,  their  skin  peeling  off 
from  head  to  foot.  Kane  was  prejudiced  against  bear,  not- 
withstanding the  great  straits  to  which  he  was  reduced,  and 
complains  of  this  food  as  being  absolutely  uneatable.  The 
testimony  of  Duner  is  more  favourable.  "  If,"  says  he,  "  a 
bear  has  not  been  eating  walrus  or  seal  in  a  state  of  semi- 
putrefaction  before  he  is  killed,  his  flesh,  though  somewhat 
coarse,  is  yet  palatable,  and  not  at  all  prejudicial  to  health." 
Parry  thought  whale-flesh  and  walrus-flesh  equally  distaste- 
ful :  he  makes  an  exception  in  favour  only  of  the  heart  of 
the  walrus ;  but  he  speaks  of  the  tenderness  and  excellence 
of  the  flesh  of  young  seals.  As  for  ourselves,  we  disdained 
nothing  that  we  could  get  hold  of,  after  the  manner  of  Sir 
John  Ross,  who  thought  the  fox  the  best  of  all  food,  better 
than  the  gull  (Larus  tridactyhts}. 

17.  The  continued  moisture  of  the  last  few  days  had 
completely  saturated  our  canvas  boots  ;  and  those  of  several 
of  us  were  besides  nearly  worn  out,  and  in  the  morning  when 
completely  frozen,  to  put  the  foot  into  one  was  as  bad  as 
putting  it  into  an  ice-hole,  so  that  we  were  obliged  to  thaw 


VII.]  SECOND  SLEDGE  EXPEDITION.— AUSTRIA  SOUND.  289 

them  over  a  spirit-flame,  and  to  knock  their  heels  with  a 
hammer  continually  during  the  march.  Sussich  had  made 
himself  a  pair  of  new  boots  out  of  a  cloth  jacket.  It  would, 
however,  be  a  mistake  to  think  that  we  should  have  been  any 
better  off  with  leather  boots.  In  fact,  we  could  not  have  put 
them  on,  and  in  the  increasing  cold  of  the  following  weeks 
our  feet  would  certainly  have  been  frost-bitten.  Our  clothes 
were  completely  saturated  in  like  manner,  and  whenever  the 
temperature  fell  they  became  stiff  with  ice.  I  suffered  the 
least  of  any,  for  my  bird-skin  garments  were  the  best  pre- 
servatives against  the  penetration  of  moisture. 

1 8,  No  kind  of  snow  opposes  such  hindrances  to  sledge- 
dragging  as  the  snow  with  the  thermometer  not  much  below 
freezing-point,  for  at  this  temperature  it  balls.  This  impedi- 
ment we  now  encountered.  The  air,  too,  became  oppressively 
heavy  ;  land  and  sky  were  suddenly  overspread  with  darkness ; 
and,  from  behind  thunderlike  clouds,  red  rays  of  the  sun  fell 
on  the  conical  mountains  of  Kane  Island.  Falls  of  snow, 
calms,  and  violent  gusts  of  wind  rapidly  succeeded  one 
another,  and  just  before  we  erected  our  tent  it  again  becam^e 
clear.  Far  to  the  north  we  saw  two  white  masses — Becker 
and  Archduke-Rainer  Islands,  and  an  extensive  inlet — Back 
Inlet;  but  only  within  Austria  Sound  could  we  count  on 
pursuing  our  journey  northwards  without  making  any  detours. 
On  Easter  Monday,  April  /th  (the  thermometer  varying 
between  9°  and  19°  below  zero  [C.]),  we  approached  Becker 
Island  ;  but  the  atmosphere  was  on  this  day  so  moist  and 
thick,  though  without  mist  in  the  proper  sense,  that  its  exist- 
ence might  be  asserted  or  disputed  according  as  the  light 
changed  ;  and  it  was  only  when  we  were  not  further  off  than 
100  paces  that  we  could  be  positive  of  the  existence  of  land, 
rising  gently  at  an  angle  of  i°  7'.  Over  this  ice-covered  island 
we  now  dragged,  and,  full  of  expectation,  mounted  its  highest 
point.  To  the  north  lay  an  indescribable  waste,  more  utterly 
desolate  than  anything  I  had  ever  seen,  even  in  the  Arctic 
regions,  interspersed  with  snow-covered  islands,  all,  big  and 
little,  of  the  same  low,  rounded  shape.  The  whole,  at  a  dis- 
tance, presented  the  appearance  of  a  chaos  of  icehills  and 
icebergs  scattered  over  a  frozen  sea.  One  thing  only  in  this 
view  gave  us  much  satisfaction.  Austria  Sound  still  stretched 


290  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

uninterruptedly  towards  the  north.  Could  we  have  forgotten 
how  the  Tegetthoff  had  drifted  towards  Franz-Josef  Land, 
that  Sound  would  have  seemed  to  us  the  true  road  to  the 
Pole.  Nor  could  we  doubt  that  in  the  immediate  north  open 
water  would  be  found,  for  in  no  other  way  could  we  interpret 
the  indications  we  had  observed  in  the  course  of  'the  last  few 
days — the  great  moisture  and  high  temperature,  the  dark 
colour  of  the  northern  sky,  the  frequent  flights  of  Auks,  and 
Divers,  grey  and  white  Gulls,  which  flew  from  the  north 
southward,  or  vice  versa. 

19.  After  crossing  Becker  Island,  we  went  on  again  on  the 
frozen  sea,  which  was  rough  and  undulating  for  some  distance. 
From  behind  one  of  the  hummocks  a  bear  suddenly  emerged, 
and  came  towards  us  without  any  fear  or  hesitation,  his  yellow 
colour  forming  a  strong  contrast  with  the  gleaming  hills  of 
ice.     When   he  was  thirty  paces  off  we  fired  ;    but  though 
severely  wounded  he  managed  to  get  away.     On  the  7th  of 
April  (the  thermometer  varying  between  16°  and  25°  below 
zero  (C),  and  with  a  light  south-west  wind),  we  passed  close 
to   Archduke-Rainer   Island,  a    heavy   rime    frost   seriously 
impeding  our  progress.     We  were  able,  however,  to  turn  to 
good  account  the  clear  sunny  weather  of  this  day.     We  dried 
our  clothes  and  tent  furniture,  spreading  them  out  in  the  sun 
over  the  sledge  or  suspending  them  to  its  mast  and  yard. 
We  had  almost  reached  Cape  Beurmann  at  noon,  and  having 
taken  our  observations,  we  found  our  latitude  to  be  81°  23'. 
We  had  consequently  gone  beyond  the  latitude  reached  by 
Morton  ;  Hayes  only  having  reached  a  slightly  higher  latitude 
than  this.     About  this  time  of  the  day  the  horizon  towards 
the  north  became  exceedingly  clear,  and  the  steep  rocks  of 
Coburg  Island  were  distinctly  visible,  and  behind  them  now 
rose  the  faint  outlines  of  mountains — Crown-Prince  Rudolf's 
Land. 

20.  At  this  latitude  it  seemed  as  if  Wilczek  Land  suddenly 
terminated,  but  when  the  sun  scattered  the  driving  mist  we 
saw  the  glittering  ranges  of  its  enormous  glaciers — the   Dove1 
Glaciers — shining  down  on  us.     Towards  the  north-east  we 
could  trace  land  trending  to  a  cape  lying  in  the  grey  distance 
— Cape  Buda  Pesth,  as  it  was  afterwards  called.     The  prospect 

1  Named  after  Dove,  the  celebrated  German  physicist. 


VIL]  SECOND  SLEDGE  EXPEDITION.-AUSTRIA  SOUND.  291 


thus  opened  to  us  of  a  vast  glacier  land,  conflicted  with  the 
general  impression  we  had  formed  of  the  resemblance  between 
the  newly-discovered  region  and  Spitzbergen  ;  for  glaciers  of 
such  extraordinary  magnitude  presuppose  the  existence  of 
a  country  stretching  far  into  the  interior.  As  it  appeared  to 
us  that  Crown-Prince  Rudolfs  Land  and  Karl  Alexander's 
Land  formed  a  continuous  whole,  we  left  Austria  Sound  and 
diverged  into  Rawlinson  Sound,  and  directed  our  course 
towards  Cape  Rath.  It  was  my  intention,  if  this  headland 
should  be  reached,  to  leave  behind  the  remainder  of  the  party 
and  push  on  with  the  dog-sledge  and  two  companions.  We 
could  count  on  finding  deep  snow-wreaths  behind  the  hum- 
mocks, and  to  dig  out  a  snow-house  would  have  been  the 
labour  of  an  hour  for  three  men.  Previous  experience  had 
convinced  us  Jthat  such  a  night  encampment  is  warmer  than 
the  shelter  which  a  tent  can  afford.  But  though  we.  were  filled 
with  zeal  to  extend  our  discoveries  as  much  as  possible,  we 
now  felt  that  the  excessive  exertions  we  had  made  had  reduced 
our  strength.  We  had  slept  on  an  average  but  five  hours  a 
day,  and  marched  the  rest  of  the  day,  or  at  any  rate  had  been 
occupied  with  all  manner  of  work.  Our  appetite  too  had  in- 
creased with  our  labours,  and  the  partaking  of  bears'  flesh 
began  to  tell  on  some  of  us.  The  restricted  use  of  bread-stuff 
was  especially  felt,  and  the  almost  exclusive,  use  of  flesh  pro- 
duced diarrhoea  and  general  debility.  Nothing  is  more  pre- 
judicial to  those  engaged  in  extended  sledge  journeys  than 
great  exertion  with  insufficient  sleep.  The  urgent  reasons  we 
had  for  losing  no  time  in  order  that  we  might  return  as  soon 
as  possible  to  the  ship,  constrained  us  to  depart  from  the 
rule  of  a  ten  hours'  sleep  to  a  seven  hours'  march  on  sledge" 
journeys.  In  consequence  of  our  peristent  adherence  to  this 
principle  during  our  return  to  Europe  after  abandoning  the 
Tegettkoff)  the  labours  incident  to  it  were  far  more  easily  per- 
formed. We  did  not  lose  but  gained  strength ;  and  some  of  us 
even  grew  stouter  during  it. 

21.  On  the  8th  of  April  we  continued  our  journey,  making 
an  early  start  as  usual.  Our  track  lay  between  countless 
hummocks,  some  of  which  were  forty  feet  high,  while  the  de- 
pressions between  them  were  filled  with  deep  layers  of  snow,  and 
as  we  advanced  into  Rawlinson  Sound,  high  icebergs  towered 


292 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


over  a  monotonous  chaos  of  ice-forms.  The  ice  resembled 
that  which  surrounded  the  Tegetthoff  during  our  first  winter, 
and  indicated  a  periodical,  perhaps  even  an  annual,  breaking 
up.  There  was  nothing,  however,  to  entitle  us  to  infer  that 
Rawlinson  Sound  was  navigable  in  summer.  Like  many  of 
the  passages  of  the  northern  coast  of  North  America,  Austria 
and  Rawlinson  Sounds  are  too  narrow  for  the  purposes  of  navi- 
gation. They  are,  however,  well  calculated  for  sledge  travel- 
ling. For  some  time  we  made  use  of  our  sledge-sail  ;  but 
when  the  wind  shifted  to  E.S.E.,  it  drove  the  sledge  so  much 


CUTTING   UP  THE   BEARS. 


from  its  true  course,  that  we  took  it  down.  Our  noses  had 
become  so  susceptible,  that  we  were  glad  to  put  on  our  wind- 
protectors  to  save  them  from  frost-bite.  Then  followed  snow- 
storms, alternating  with  brilliant  sunshine  which,  however, 
illuminated,  partially  only,  some  reaches  of  the  hummocky  ice, 
while  the  distant  land  lay  in  shadow.  It  cost  us  excessive 
labour  to  get  the  sledge  on  ;  we  had  occasionally  to  dig  a 
lane  for  it,  and  we  ran  some  risk  of  breaking  it.  Our  advance 
was  one  continual  zig-zag,  due  to  the  confused  character  of 


VII.]  SECOND  SLEDGE  EXPEDITION.— AUSTRIA  SOUND.  293 

the  ice  on  which  we  travelled  and  the  untrustworthiness  of  the 
compass  in  high  latitudes.  It  seemed  too,  as  if  the  declina- 
tion of  the  magnetic  needle  had  considerably  diminished  since 
we  left  the  ship.  Our  labours  were  diversified  by  the  visit  of 
a  bear,  who,  when  we  first  observed  him,  was  standing  on  the 
top  of  one  of  the  many  ice-hummocks  about  300  paces  distant. 
He  then  approached  us,  as  was  usually  the  case,  under  the 
wind,  and  we  at  once  drew  up  to  receive  him.  He  took  no 
notice  of  the  bread  we  had  laid  down  to  gain  his  attention, 
but  still  pressed  on  till  he  received  three  bullets  in  his  head. 
Notwithstanding  this  he  ran  for  about  seventy  yards  and  then 
fell.  To  make  sure,  another  bullet  was  fired  into  his  body, 
and  thinking  him  dead,  we  forthwith  began  to  cut  him  up  ; 
but  when  his  belly  was  being  opened,  he  raised- his  head  in  a 
fury,  seized  the  butt-end  of  my  rifle  with  his  teeth  and  tore  it 
from  my  hand.  My  companions  soon  despatched  him.  The 
bear  was  eight  feet  long,  and  therefore  of  unusual  size.  We 
might  have  cut  off  two  or  three  cwt.  of  flesh  from  his  carcase, 
but  in  consideration  of  the  heavy  lading  of  the  sledge,  we 
contented  ourselves  with  appropriating  sixty  pounds.  Both 
Rawlinson  and  Austria  Sounds  were  equally  rich  in  fresh  traces 
of  bears,  which  seemed  to  be  those  of  whole  families  and  not 
of  individual  animals. 

22.  Our  latitude  from  a  meridian  observation  was  found  to 
be  81°  38' — and  though  the  sun  shining  dimly  through  the 
clouds  might  account  for  an  error  of  two  or  three  minutes,  we 
had  certainly  passed  beyond  the  latitude  81°  35'  reached  by 
Hayes  in  Smith's  Sound  in  I86I.1  Having  no  conception  at 
the  time  that  Hall's  American  expedition  had  penetrated;  the 
year  before  we  achieved  this  result,  to  82°  9'  on  the  land  and . 
82°  22'  at  sea,  we  hoisted  our  sledge-flag  to  commemorate  our 
success.  The  character  of  the  ice  now  became  so  wild  and 
confused  that  we  wandered  45°  from  one  point  of  the  compass 
to  the  other.  We  constantly  expected  to  come  upon  open 
fissures,  and  could  not  conceal  from  ourselves  how  easily  its 
loose  connection  might  be  broken  up  by  a  storm,  and  our 
return  to  the  ship  exposed  to  great  risks.  The  transport  of 
our  travelling  gear  became  increasingly  difficult,  and  great 
were  our  fears  lest,  through  the  constant  heavy  shocks  which 

1  Parry  reached,  on  the  frozen  sea  to  the  north  of  Spitzbergen,  82°  45'  N.L. 


294  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  vii. 

the  sledge  encountered,  the  case  of  spirit  should  be  crushed 
and  destroyed.  The  difficulties  too  to  be  overcome  amid 
the  multitude  of  hummocks  were  more  depressing  than 
the  occurrence  of  snow-storms,  inasmuch  as  their  number 
almost  destroyed  the  possibility  of  progress ;  and  the 
monotonous  uniformity  which  tired  the  eye  tended  also  to 
depress  the  spirits. 

23.  On  the  Qth  of  April  (the  thermometer  standing  at  10 
F.,  and  a  light  breeze  blowing  from  the  east)  we  continued 
our  work  of  dragging  between  the  hummocks  till  noon.  We 
then  ascended  an  iceberg,  and  discovered  that  the  hummocks 
of  ice  in  Rawlinson's  Sound  appeared  to  stretch  on  without  end. 
We  therefore  altered  our  course  and  took  a  north-westerly 
direction,  in  order  to  come  under  Crown-Prince  Rudolfs  Land^ 
whose  noble  mountain  forms  and  mighty  glaciers  shone  forth 
in  the  light  of  the  sun.  We  expected  to  find  smoother  ice  on 
its  coast-line ;  but  we  were  deceived  in  this  expectation,  for 
the  character  of  the  ice  remained  unchanged.  We  were  com- 
pelled therefore  to  cross  this  Sound  in  a  westerly  direction  to 
Hohenlohe  Island,  and  to  select  the  rocky  pyramid — visible 
from  a  great  distance — of  Cape  Schrotter  as  the  point  where 
our  expedition  should  divide  into  two  parties  ;  the  larger 
party  to  remain  behind,  the  smaller  to  penetrate  further 
towards  the  north  over  the  glaciers  of  Rudolfs  Land.  By 
noon  of  this  day  we  reached  81°  37'  N.  L.  and  in  the  evening 
arrived  at  Cape  Schrotter.  All  the  labours  and  efforts  of  the 
last  few  days  had  consequently  been  without  result. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

IN   THE  EXTREME   NORTH. 

I.  IMMEDIATELY  after  reaching  Cape  Schrotter,  the  east 
end  of  Hohenlohe  Island,  we  ascended  the  summit  of  this 
Dolerite  rock,  which  was  quite  free  from  snow,  and  covered 
with  a  sparse  vegetation.  We  were  surprised  to  find  here  the 
excrement  of  a  hare.  The  prospect  which  lay  before  us 
convinced  us  of  the  necessity  of  our  proposed  temporary 
separation.  The  mountains  of  Crown-Prince  Rudolf's  Land, 
separated  from  us  by  an  arm  of  the  sea  covered  with  level 
ice,  were  so  high  (about  3,000  feet)  that  we  saw  at  once  that  we 
could  pass  over  them  only  with  the  small  dog-sledge.  The 
walking  powers,  moreover,  of  two  of  my  companions  had 
greatly  deteriorated,  and  for  them  rest  was  not  an  indulgence, 
but  a  necessity.  Austria  Sound  appeared  to  stretch  still 
further  to  th,e  north,  but  its  western  coasts  turned  sharply 
to  the  left  in  the  precipitous  cliffs  of  Cape  Felder  and  Cape 
Bohm.  The  blue  jagged  line  of  mountains,  towering  above 
snow-fields  lying  in  the  sun,  stretched  away  to  the  north-west 
till  they  were  lost  in  dark  streaks  on  the  horizon,  which  our 
experience  led  us  to  interpret  as  a  water- sky  above  open 
spaces  of  the  sea. 

2.  I  was  greatly  delighted  by  Orel's  readiness,  though  he 
was  suffering  from  inflamed  eyes,  to  take  part  in  the  expedi- 
tion to  the  extreme  north  ;  and  it  only  remained  for  us  to 
select  the  fittest  among  the  party  and  to  calm  the  apprehen- 
sions of  those  who  were  to  remain  behind.  On  our  return  to 
the  foot  of  the  rocks,  where  the  tent  was  already  pitched, 
we  found  the  rest  of  the  party  sitting  close  to  each  other 
at  the  rocky  wall  on  which  the  sun  was  shining,  in  order 


296  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

to  warm  themselves, — like   crickets  on. the  wall  of  a  house. 
The  success  of  an  expedition  like  that  we  projected  depends 
chiefly    on   the  mutual    good    feeling    among'    its    members, 
and  he  who  commands  it,  besides  participating  personally  in 
all  the  labours  to  be  endured,  must  show  himself  a  sympa- 
thetic friend  even  in  cases  where  strict  duty  does  not  enjoin  it, 
so  that  confidence  in  him  may  grow  into  a  kind  of  belief  in 
his  infallibility.     There  could  not  be  more  devoted  or  enduring 
men  than  those  who  were  here  lying  in  the  sun,  and  whom  we 
now  joined,  in  order  to  decide  the  question  of  the  hour.     I 
explained  to  them  the  plans  I  meant  to  follow,— that  I  should 
be  absent  from  five  to  eight  days,  that  if  I  should  not  return 
to  them  within  fifteen  days  they  should  march  back  to  the 
ship  with  the  sledge — sawn   through   the   middle — and   the 
stock  of  provisions  which  should  be  placed  at  their  disposal 
would  suffice  for  this  emergency.     I  then  asked  each  of  them 
whether  he  could  dismiss  fear,   and   remain   behind   in    this 
desolation.     Sussich  answered  :  "  Se  uno  de  lori  resta  indietro, 
mi  non  go  paura  : "  so  said  the  rest.     By  the  expression,  how- 
ever,  "  uno  de  lori  "  they  meant  Orel  or  one  of  the  two  Tyrolese, 
and  specially  with  an  eye  to  the  bears  which  might  be  prowling 
about.     I  left  it  free  to  Klotz  and   Haller  to  decide  which  of 
them  was  the  fittest  and  most  serviceable  to  accompany  me  : 
"  You,"  answered  Haller,  "  you,  Klotz,  are  the  better  man  to 
drag  the  sledge  and  endure   fatigue."     Accordingly  Sussich 
and  Lukinovich  remained  under  Haller's  command.     These 
three  were  ordered  not  to  go  more  than  300  yards  from  Cape 
Schrotter,  to  remain  on  the  defensive  if  attacked  by  bears,  to 
spend  their  time  in   drying  their  clothes   and  repairing  their 
torn  boots,  and  to  go  about  in  wooden  shoes  to  save  wear  and 
tear.      Haller  received  as  Governor  of  Hohenlohe  Island  a 
pocket-compass,  a  watch,  an  aneroid  barometer,  and  a  ther- 
mometer, and  to   them  we  left  also  our  little  medicine-chest. 
If  Dr.  Kepes  had  once  tried  to  make  a  doctor  of  me  in  one 
hour,  in  now  repeating  the  experiment  on   Haller  I   confined 
myself  to  ten  minutes. 

3.  On  the  morning  of  the  loth  of  April  (the  thermometer 
standing  at  5°  F.)  we  divided  the  tent ;  one  half  was  put  on  the 
dog-sledge,  the  other  was  pitched,  with  its  open  side  close  under 
the  rock.  Before  a  caravan  takes  the  desert,  the  camels  are 


viii.]  IN  THE  EXTREME  NORTH. 


297 


watered,  and  we  too,  though  in  a  very  different  kind  of  desert, 
exposed  to  the  constant  evil  of  thirst,  would  gladly  have  been 
treated  in  like  fashion.  But  we  had  to  content  ourselves  with 
a  pint  of  boiling  water,  served  out  to  each  of  us  every  morn- 
ing, reminding  us,  indeed,  of  coffee,  for  2  Ibs.  of  it  were 
boiled  in  105  gallons  of  water  in  the  course  of  thirty  days. 
The  provisions  were  divided,  and  enough  for  eight  days  was 
dealt  out  to  the  party  starting  to  the  north,  Orel,  Zaninovitch, 
Klotz,  myself,  and  two  dogs.  The  special  requirements  of 
our  expedition,  among  which  were  a  rifle  and  a  revolver,  raised 
the  weight  of  our  sledge  to  about  4  cwt,  which  it  was  the 
business  of  the  dogs  to  draw  without  any  assistance  from  us, 
and  this  they  did  over  the  level  snow  with  such  zeal,  that  we 
had  some  trouble  in  keeping  up  with  them. 

4.  The  merits  of  our  dogs  I  have  hitherto  left  unnoticed,  in 
order  emphatically  to  assert  that  we  owed  the  passing  beyond 
the  eighty-second  degree  of  north  latitude  not  to  our  own 
exertions,  but  to  the  endurance  and  courage  of  these  animals. 
No  kind  of  life  among  dogs  is  comparable  for  hardships  with 
the  life  of  a  dog  in  an  Arctic  sledge.  His  tent  is  scarcely  the 
pretext  of  a  shelter,  and  his  natural  coat  is  generally  covered 
by  a  thick  rime.  The  snow  when  it  drifts  completely  covers 
him,  though  he  constantly  but  vainly  seeks  to  shake  it  off. 
He  draws  his  breath  with  difficulty,  hunger  gnaws  at  his 
bowels,  and  his  wounded  feet  colour  the  snow  with  blood. 
Often,  too,  these  poor  animals  amid  the  great  cold  must  keep 
still  ;  then  they  lift  up  their  paws  alternately,  to  prevent 
frost-bite.  The  two  dogs,  which  accompanied  us  to  the  ex- 
treme North,  were  the  noblest  animals  ever  employed  in  a 
sledge  expedition,  and  when  I  recall  the  great  services  they 
rendered  us,  both  now  and  afterwards  in  the  return  to  Europe> 
their  sad  end  fills  me  with  sincere  sorrow.  Jubinal  and 
Torossy  were  dogs  of  remarkable  size  and  strength,  and 
escaped  the  epidemic  diseases  1  which  attacked  the  dogs  of 
Hayes  and  Kane  ;  and  though  it  has  been  thought  that  the 

1  Kane's  dogs  died  principally  in  consequence  of  being  fed  chiefly  on  salt  meat, 
and  Hayes's  from  a  disease  among  dogs  which  spreads  over  all  West  Greenland. 
Epidemics  of  this  kind  break  out  among  the  dogs  of  the  Eskimos  and  of  the 
Siberian  tribes.  Middendorf  mentions,  however,  that  canine  madness  never  occurs 
among  the  dogs  of  the  latter. 
21 


298 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


dogs  of  the  Eskimo  and  of  the  Siberian  people  were  alone 
adapted  for  Arctic  expeditions,  our  experience  with  our  own 
dogs,  most  of  them  brought  from  Vienna,  proves  that  they 
were  not  a  whit  less  useful.  Our  dogs  had  only  one  defect : 
they  had  not  been  trained  to  sledge-drawing  from  their  youth, 
but  had  been  broken  to  it  only  during  our  expedition,  and 
were  therefore  not  always  amenable  to  discipline.  When  left 
to  themselves  in  dragging  the  sledge  they  went  on,  without 
turning  to  the  right  or  left,  from  cape  to  cape,  and  if  they 
found  themselves  on  a  wide  plain  of  ice,  and  far  from  all 
striking  landmarks,  they  ran  either  towards  the  sun  or  moon, 


ICEBERGS  AT  THE  BASE  OF  THE  MIDDENDORF  GLACIER. 

or  some  remarkable  star.  It  was  against  the  grain  with  them 
to  have  to  drag  in  the  teeth  of  the  wind,  and  if  they  had  to 
push  on  amid  hummocks  of  ice,  they  immediately  began  to 
growl.  They  were  fed  in  the  morning,  and  more  particularly 
in  the  evening,  and  they  showed  a  delicacy  of  taste  in  dis- 
criminating between  bear's  flesh  and  the  despised  seal's  flesh. 
While  they  carefully  avoided  coming  near  us  before  our  start, 
provided  they  were  not  very  hungry,  in  order  to  escape  being 
harnessed,  yet  when  harnessed  nothing  could  exceed  their 
vigour  and  persistence  in  dragging. 


VIIL]  IN  THE  EXTREME  NORTH.  299 

5.  As   we    approached    the    promontory  on    the    south  of 
Crown-Prince  Rudolf's*  Land,  we  came  upon  innumerable  ice- 
bergs,   from    one  hundred  to   two    hundred  feet  high,  which 
made  an  incessant  cracking  and  snapping  sound  in  the  sun- 
shine.    The  Middendorf  glacier,  with  an  enormous  sea-wall, 
ran  towards  the  north  to  a  great  distance.     Deep  layers  of 
snow  and  great  rents  in  the  sea-ice,  the  consequence  of  the 
falling-in    of  icebergs,  filled    the    intervening  spaces  between 
them.     Into  these  fissures  we  were  continually  falling,  drench- 
ing our  canvas  boots  and  clothes  with   sea- water.      But  the 
aspect  of  these  colossal  fragments  of  glaciers  engrossed  us  to 
such  an  extent,  that  we  wandered  a  long  time  with  unflagging 
interest  among  these  pyramids,  tables,  and  cliffs.     It  was  only 
when  I  sent  on  Klotz  to  mark  out  by  his  footsteps  a  path  by 
which  we  might  ascend  the  Middendorf  glacier,  that  we  came 
to  a  more  open  region,  and,  all  putting  their  strength  to  the 
work  of  dragging,  we  gained  its  summit,  crossing  in  our  pro- 
gress many  crevasses  bridged  over  with  snow.     Three  of  these 
yawned  across  the  lower  part  of  the  glacier,   needing  but  a 
slight   movement  of  the  ice  to  detach  them  and  transform 
them  into  icebergs.     Further  on,  the  glacier  appeared  smooth 
and  free  from  crevasses,  although  its  inclination  amounted  to 
several  degrees.     Towards  the  north  it  seemed  as  if  it  might 
be  crossed  without  excessive  exertion,  if  all  took  part  in  the 
work  of  dragging.     But  before  we  began  this  part  of  the  day's, 
work  we  rested,  and  recruited  ourselves  with  dinner,  and  set- 
ing  up  our  little  tent  at  about  400  paces  above  the  edge  of  the 
glacier,  we  looked  down  with  feelings  of  delight  on  its  semi- 
circular terminal  precipice  and  the  gleaming  host  of  icebergs 
which  filled  the  indentations  of  the  coast;     While  we  were' 
sitting  in  the  tent  Klotz  made  the  fatal  communication  to  me, 
that  he  was  not  the  man  he  should  be,  that  for  some  days  his 
foot  had  swollen  and  ulcerated,  so  that  he  could  walk  only  in 
shoes  made  of  hide.     However  vexatious  this    mishap,  there 
was  nothing  for  it  but  to  send  him  back  to  Hohenlohe  Island. 
Laden  with  a  sack  and  carrying  a  revolver,  he  set  off,  and 
soon  disappeared  from  our  eyes  in  the  labyrinth  of  icebergs 
beneath  us. 

6.  We  had  meanwhile  again  packed  the  sledge,  harnessed 
the  dogs,  and  fastened  the  traces  round  us,  when,  just  as  we 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


were  setting  off,  the  snow  gave  way  beneath  the  sledge,  and 
down  fell  Zaninovich,  the  dogs,  and  the  sledge,  and  from  an 
unknown  depth  I  heard  a  man's  voice  mingled  with  the  howl- 
ing of  dogs.  All  this  was  the  impression  of  a  moment,  while 
I  felt  myself  dragged  backwards  by  the  rope.  Staggering 
back,  and  seeing  the  dark  abyss  beneath  me,  I  could  not  doubt 
that  I  should  be  precipitated  into  it  the  next  instant.  A 
wonderful  providence  arrested  the  fall  of  the  sledge  ;  at  a 
depth  of  about  thirty  feet  it  stuck  fast  between  the  sides  of 
the  crevasse,  just  as  I  was  being  dragged  to  the  edge  of  the 
abyss  by  its  weight.  The  sledge  having  jammed  itself  in,  I 


THE   SLEDGE   FALLS    INTO    A  CREVASSS   ON  THE   M1DDENDORF  GLACIER. 

lay  on  my  stomach  close  to  the  awful  brink,  the  rope  which 
attached  me  to  the  sledge  tightly  strained,  and  cutting  deep 
into  the  snow.  The  situation  was  all  the  more  dreadful  as  I, 
the  only  person  present  accustomed  to  the  dangers  of  glaciers, 
lay  there  unable  to  stir.  When  I  cried  down  to  Zaninovich 
that  I  would  cut  the  rope,  he  implored  me  not  to  do  it,  for  if 
I  did,  the  sledge  would  turn  over,  and  he  would  be  killed. 
For  a  time  I  lay  quiet,  considering  what  was  to  be  done.  By 
and  by  it  flashed  into  my  memory,  how  I'  and  my  guide  had 
once  fallen  down  a  wall  of  ice  in  the  Ortler  Mountains,  800 
feet  high,  and  had  escaped.  This  inspired  me  with  confidence 


VIII.]  IN  THE  EXTREME  NORTH.  301 

to  venture  on  a  rescue,  desperate  as  it  seemed  under  the  cir- 
cumstances.    Orel  had  now  come  up,  and  although  he  had 
never  been  on  a  glacier  before,  this  gallant  officer  dauntlessly 
advanced  to  the  edge  of  the  crevasse,  and,  laying  himself  on 
his  stomach,  looked  down  into  the  abyss,  and  cried  to  me, 
"  Zaninovich  is  lying  on  a  ledge  of  snow  in  the  crevasse,  with 
precipices  all  round  him,  and  the  dogs  are  still  attached  to  the 
traces  of  the  sledge,  which  has  stuck  fast."     I  called  to  him 
to  throw  me  his  knife,  which  he  did  with  such  dexterity,  that 
I  was  able  to  lay  hold  of  it  without  difficulty ;  and  as  the 
only  means  of  rescue,  I  severed  the  trace  which  was  fastened 
round  my  waist.     The  sledge   made  a  short  turn,  and  then 
stuck  fast  again.     I  immediately  sprang  to  my  feet,  drew  off 
my  canvas  boots,   and  sprang  over  the  crevasse,  which  was 
about  ten  feet  broad.     I  now  caught  sight  of  Zaninovich  and 
the   dogs,   and  shouted  to  him,  that  I  would   run  back    to 
Hohenlohe  Island  to  fetch  men  and  ropes  for  his  rescue,  and 
that  rescued  he  would  be,  if  he  could  contrive  for  four  hours  to 
keep  himself  from  being  frozen.     I  heard  his  answer  :  "  Fate, 
Signore,  fate  pure!"  and  then  Orel  and  I  disappeared.    Heed- 
less of  the  crevasses  which  lay  in  our  path,  or  of  the  bears 
which  might  attack  us,  we  ran  down  the  glacier  back  to  Cape 
Schrotter,  six  miles  off.     Only  one  thought  possessed  us — the 
rescue  of  Zaninovich,  the  jewel  and  pride  of  our  party,  and 
the  recovery  of  our  invaluable  store  of  provisions,  and  of  the 
book  containing  our  journals,  which,  if  lost,  could  never  be 
replaced.       But    even    apart    from    my   personal    feeling    for 
Zaninovich,  I  keenly  felt  the  reproaches  to  which  I  should  be 
exposed  of  incautious  travelling  on  glaciers ;  and  it  gave  me 
no  comfort  to  think  that  my  previous  experiences  in  this  kind 
of  travelling  over  the  glaciers  of  Greenland  appeared  to  justify 
my  proceedings.     Stung  with  these  reflections,  I  pressed  on  at 
the  top  of  my  speed,  leaving  Orel  far  behind  me.     Bathed  in 
perspiration,  I  threw  off  my  bird7skin  garments,  my  boots,  my 
gloves,  and  my  shawl,  and  ran  in  my  stockings  through  the 
deep  snow.     After  passing  the  labyrinth  of  icebergs  I  saw  the 
rocky  pyramid  of  Cape  Schrotter  before  me  in  the  distance. 
The  success  of  my  venture  depended  on  the  weather.    If  snow- 
driving  should  set  in,  and  footprints  should  be  obliterated, 
it  would  be  impossible  to  find  Hohenlohe  Island.     All  around 


302  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

me  it  was  fearfully  lonely.  Encompassed  by  glaciers,  I  was 
absolutely  alone.  At  last  I  saw  Klotz  emerge  from  behind 
an  iceberg  at  some  distance  off,  and  though  I  continued  to 
shout  his  name  till  I  almost  reached  him,  I  failed  to  rouse  him 
from  his  usual  reverie.  When  at  last  he  saw  me  breathlessly 
pushing  on,  scarcely  clothed,  and  constantly  calling,  his  sack 
slipped  from  his  back,  and  he  stared  at  me  as.  if  he  had  lost 
his  senses.  When  the  hardy  son  of  the  mountains  carne  to 
understand  that  Zaninovich  with  the  sledge  was  buried  in  the 
crevasse,  he  began  to  weep,  in  his  simplicity  of  heart  taking 
the  blame  of  what  had  happened  on  himself.  He  was  so 


-f---_ 


KLOTZ'S   AMAZEMENT. 

agitated  and  disturbed,  that  I  made  him  promise  that  he 
would  do  himself  no  mischief,  and  then,  leaving  him  to  his 
moody  silence,  I  ran  on  again  towards  the  island.  It  seemed 
as  if  I  should  never  reach  Cape  Schrotter ;  with  head  bent 
down  I  trudged  on,  counting  my  steps  through  the  deep  snow; 
when  I  raised  it  again,  after  a  little  time,  it  was  always  the 
same  black  spot  that  I  saw  on- the  distant  horizon.  At  last  I 
came  near  it,  saw  the  tent,  saw  some  dark  spots  creep  out  of 
it,  saw  them  gather  together,  and  then  run  down  the  snow- 
slope.  These  were  the  friends  we  had  left  behind.  A  few 
words  of  explanation,  with  an  exhortation  to  abstain  from 


VIIL]  IN  THE  EXTREME  NORTH.  303 

idle  lamentation,  were  enough.  They  at  once  detached  a 
second  rope  from  the  large  sledge,  and  got  hold  of  a  long 
tent-pole.  Meantime  I  had  rushed  upon  the  cooking-machine, 
quickly  melted  a  little  snow  to  quench  my  raging  thirst,  and 
then  we  all  set  off  again — Haller,  Sussich,  Lukinovich,  and 
myself — to  the  Middendorf  glacier.  Tent  and  provisions  were 
left  unwatched  ;  we  ran  back  for  three  hours  and  a  half ;  fears 
for  Zaninovich  gave  such  wings  to  my  steps,  that  my  com- 
panions were  scarcely  able  to  keep  up  with  me.  Ever  and 
anon,  I  had  to  stop  to  drink  some  rum.  At  the  outset  we 
met  Orel,  and  rather  later  Klotz,  both  making  for  Cape 
Schrotter,  Klotz  to  remain  behind  there,  and  Orel  to  return 


THE  ALARM   OF  THE   HOHENLOHE    PARTY. 

with  us  at  once  to  Middendorf  glacier.  When  we  came 
among  the  icebergs  under  Cape  Habermann  I  picked  up,  one 
.by  one,  the  clothes  I  had  thrown  away.  Reaching  the  glacier, 
we  tied  ourselves  together  with  a  rope.  Going  before  the  rest, 
I  approached  with  beating  heart  the  place,  where  the  sledge 
had  disappeared  four  hours  and  a  half  ago.  A  dark  abyss 
yawned  before,  us ;  not  a  sound  issued  from  its  depths,  not 
even  when  I  lay  on  the  ground  and  shouted.  At  last  I  heard 
the  whining  of  a  dog,  and  then  an  unintelligible  answer  from 
Zaninovich.  Haller  was  quickly  let  down  by  a  rope  ;  he 
found  him  still  living,  but  almost  frozen,  on  a  ledge  of  snow 


304  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

forty  feet  down  the  crevasse.  Fastening  himself  and  Zanino- 
vich  to  the  rope,  they  were  drawn  up  after  great  exertion.  A 
storm  of  greetings  saluted  Zaninovich,  stiff  and  speechless 
though  he  was,  when  he  appeared  on  the  surface  of  the 
glacier.  I  need  not  add  that  we  gave  him  some  rum  to 
stimulate  his  vital  energies.  It  was  a  noble  proof  how  duty 
and  discipline  assert  themselves,  even  in  such  situations,  that 
the  first  word  of  this  sailor,  saved  from  being  frozen  to  death, 
was  not  a  complaint,  but  thanks,  accompanied  with  a  request 
that  I  would  pardon  him  if  he,  in  order  to  save  himself  from 
being  frozen,  had  ventured  to  drink  a  portion  of  the  rum, 
which  had  fallen  down  in  its-  case  with  the  sledge  to  his  ledge 
of  snow.  Haller  again  descended,  and  fastened  the  dogs  to 
the  rope.  The  clever  animals  had  freed  themselves  from  their 
traces  in  some  inexplicable  way,  and  had  sprung  to  a  narrow 
ledge,  where  Haller  found  them,  close  to  where  Zaninovich 
had  lain.  It  was  astonishing  how  quickly  they  discerned  the 
danger  of  the  position,  and  how  great  was  their  confidence  in 
us.  They  had  slept  the  whole  time,  as  Zaninovich  afterwards 
told  us,  and  he  had  carefully  avoided  touching  them,  lest  they 
should  fall  down  deeper  into  the  abyss.  We  drew  them  up 
with  some  difficulty,  and  they  gave!  expression  to  their  joy, 
first  by  rolling  themselves  vigorously  in  the  snow,  and  then 
by  licking  our  hands.  We  then  raised  Haller  by  the  rope 
some  ten  feet  higher  than  the  ledge  on  which  Zaninovich  had 
lain,  so  that  he  might  be  able  to  cut  the  ropes  which  fastened 
the  loading  of  the  firmly  wedged-in  sledge.  At  this  moment 
Orel  arrived,  and  with  his  help  we  raised  one  by  one  the 
articles  with  which  the  sledge  was  loaded.  It  was  ten  o'clock 
before  we  were  convinced  that  we  had  lost  nothing  of  any 
importance  in  the  crevasse. 

7.  We  now  left  the  glacier  and  the  icebergs,  and  by  mid- 
night had  reached  Cape  Habermann.  Here  we  slept,  and  the 
dogs  with  us,  as  uncomfortably  as  possible.  On  the  morning 
of  the  nth  of  April  (the  thermometer  marking  3°  R),  we 
started  at  an  hour  when  we  would  much  rather  have  con- 
tinued to  sleep.  Our  thirst  was  so  great  that  we  felt  our- 
selves equal  to  drinking  up  a  stream.  Haller,  Sussich, 
Lukinovich  had  during  the  night  returned  to  Cape  Schrotter. 
Before  they  started  Haller  earnestly  besought  me  to  come 


VIII.] 


IN  THE  EXTREME  NORTH. 


305 


back  as  soon  as  possible ;  for  the  recent  event,  he  said,  had 
not  been  without  its  disquieting  effects  on  the  men.  On  the 
whole,  we  might  congratulate  ourselves  on  being  able  to 
continue  our  journey,  without  having  received  any  serious 
damage,  though  no  longer  over  the  treacherous  glacier. 

8,  A  sharp  turn  to  the  left  brought  us  to  the  west  coast  of 
Crown-Prince  Rudolf's  Land,  along  which  we  pursued  our 
route  northwards.  When  we  reached  Cape  Brorock,  where  by 
an  observation  we  found  our  latitude  at  noon  to  be  81°  45', 
the  weather  became  wonderfully  bright,  and  the  warm,  sun- 
light lay  on  the  broken  summits  of  the  Dolerite  mountains, 


HALT   UNDER  CROWN-PRINCE    RUDOLF'S   LAND. 

which,  though  covered  with  gleaming  ice,  were  free  from  snow. 
To  the  north-west  we  saw  at  first  nothing  but  ice  up  to  the 
horizon  ;  even  with  the  telescope  of  the  theodolite  I  could  not 
decide  for  the  existence  of  land,  which  Orel's  sharp  eye  dis- 
covered in  the  far  distance.  In  the  Arctic  regions,  it  often 
happens  that  banks  of  fog  on  the  horizon  assume  the  character 
of  distant  ranges,  for  the  small  height  to  which  these  banks 
rise  in  the  cold  air  causes  them  to  be  very  sharply  defined.  It 
is  very  common  also  to  make  the  same  mistake  in  the  case 
of  mists  arising  from  the  waste  water  of  enormous  glaciers. 
We  marched  on  northward  close  under  the  land,  and  for  the 
first  time  over  smooth  undulating  ice,  in  high  spirits  at  the 
increasing  grandeur  of  the  scenery  and  at  the  happy  issue  of 


3o6  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  vm. 

our  adventure  of  yesterday.  Thirst  compelled  us  frequently 
to  halt  in  order  to  liquefy  snow  ; 1  sometimes  we  melted  it  as 
we  marched  along,  and  our  sledge  with  smoke  curling  up  from 
the  cooking-machine  then  resembled  a  small  steamer. 

9.  By  and  by  we  came  to  more  snow,  and  the  ice,  through 
which  many  fissures  ran,  became  gradually  thinner,  but  when 
we  reached  the  imposing  headland,  which  we  called  Cape  Auk, 
the  ice  lay  in  forced-up  barriers.  A  strange  change  had  come 
over  the  aspect  of  nature.  A  dark  water-sky  appeared  in  the 
north,  and  heavy  mists  rolled  down  to  the  steep  promontories 
of  Karl  Alexander  Land  ;  the  temperature  rose  to  10°  F.,2  our 
track  became  moist,  the  snow-drifts  collapsed  under  us  with 
a  loud  noise,  and  if  we  had  previously  been  surprised  with 
the  flight  of  birds  from  the  north,  we  now  found  all  the  rocky 
precipices  of  Rudolf's  Land  covered  with  thousands  of  auks 
and  divers.  Enormous  flocks  of  birds  flew  up  and  filled  the 
air,  and  the  whole  region  seemed  alive  with  their  incessant 
whirring.  We  met  everywhere  with  traces  of  bears  and  foxes. 
Seals  lay  on  the  ice,  but  sprang  into  the  water  before  we  got 
within  shot  of  them.  But  notwithstanding  these  signs  of  a 
richer  animal  life,  we  should  not  be  justified  in  inferring,  from 
what  we  saw  in  a  single  locality,  that  life  increases  as  we  move 
northwards.  It  was  a  venial  exaggeration,  if  amid  such  im- 
pressions we  pronounced  for  the  nearness  of  an  open  Polar 
sea,  and  without  doubt  all  adherents  of  this  opinion,  had  they 
come  with  us  to  this  point  and  no  further,  would  have  found 
in  these  signs  fresh  grounds  to  support  their  belief.  In 
enumerating  these  observations,  I  am  conscious  what  attrac- 
tions they  must  have  for  every  one  who  still  leans  to  the 
opinion  that  an  open  ocean  will  be  found  at  the  Pole  ;  subse- 
quent experience,  however,  will  show  how  little  is  their  value 
in  support  of  this  antiquated  hypothesis. 

10.  Our  track  was  now  very  unsafe  ;  it  was  only  the  ice- 
bergs which  seemed  to  keep  the  ice  in  the  bays.  A  strong 
east  wind  would  certainly  have  broken  it  up  and  cut  off  our 
return,  at  least  with  the  sledge.  There  were  no  longer  the 

1  Snow-water  was  for  two  years  the  only  water  we  used,  and  as  none  of  us 
became  goitred,  we  were  a  living  refutation  of  the  opinion  shared  by  many  that  its 
constant  use  generates  this  disease  in  the  inhabitants  of  the  Alps. 

2  On  boai'd  the  ship  the  temperature  at  the  same  time  was  —  20°  F. 


308  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  vm. 

connected  floes  of  winter,  but  young  ice  only,  covered  with 
saline  efflorescence,  dangerously  pliable,  and  strewn  over  with 
the  remains  of  recent  pressures.  The  ice  was  broken  through 
in  many  places  by  the  holes  of  seals.  It  was  expedient  there- 
fore to  tie  ourselves  together  with  a  long  rope,  and  each  of  us, 
as  he  took  his  turn  in  leading,  constantly  sounded  the  ice. 
Passing  by.  Cape  Auk,  which  resembled  a  gigantic  aviary,  we 
followed  the  line  of  Teplitz  Bay,  into  which  a  stream  of 
glaciers,  descending  from  the  high  mountains  in  the  interior, 
discharged  itself.  Icebergs  lay  along  the  terminal  glacier  wall 
which  formed  its  shore.  Ascending  one  of  these  masses,  we 
found  granite  erratics  on  its  surface  and  saw  the  open  sea 
stretching  far  to  the  west.  There  seemed  to  be  ice  only  on 
the  extreme  horizon.  As  the  ice-sheet  over  which  our  track 
lay  became  thinner  and  more  pliable,  and  constantly  threatened 
to  give  way  under  us,  the  height  and  length  of  its  piled-up 
barriers  increased  also,  and  because  the  high  glacier  walls 
made  it  impossible  to  travel  over  the  land,  we  had  no  other 
resource  than  to  open  up  a  track  through  the  hummocky 
ice  by  pick  and  shovel.  At  last  even  this  expedient  failed  to. 
help  us  ;  our  sledge,  constantly  damaged,  and  as  constantly 
repaired,  had  to  be  unloaded,  the  dogs .  unharnessed,  and 
everything  transported  separately.  Evening  had  now  arrived; 
ahead  of  us  lay  the  two  rock-towers,  which  we  called  Cape 
Saulen,  and  open  coast-water  here  began. 

II.  Beautiful  and  sublime  was  this  far-off  world.  From  a 
height  we  looked  over  a  dark  "  ice-hole,"  studded  with  icebergs 
like  pearls,  and  over  these  lay  heavy  clouds  through  which  the 
sunbeams  fell  on  the  gleaming  water.  Right  over  the  true  sun 
shone  a  second,  though  somewhat  duller  sun  ;  the  icebergs  of 
Crown-Prince  Rudolf's  Land',  appearing  enormously  high, 
sailed  through  the  still  region  amid  rolling  mist  and  surrounded 
by  vast  flocks  of  birds.  Close  under  Cape  Saulen  (the  Cape 
of  Columns)  we  came  upon  the  steep  edge  of  the  glaciers  and 
dragged  up  our  baggage  with  a  long  rope.  While  Orel  got 
ready  our  encampment  for  the  night  in  the  fissure  of  a  glacier, 
and  completed  as  usual  his  meteorological  observations  and 
soundings,  I  ascended  a  height  to  reconnoitre  our  track  for 
the  next  day.  The  sun  was  setting  amid  a  scene  of  majestic 
wildness  ;  its  golden  rays  shot  through  dark  banks  of  mist 


5io  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  vm. 

and  a  gentle  wind,  playing  over  the  "  ice-hole/'  formed  ever- 
widening  circles  on  its  mirror-like  surface.  Land  was  no 
longer  visible  towards  the  north,  it  was  covered  with  a  dense 
"water-sky."  A  bird  flew  close  past  me;  at  first  I  took  it 
for  a  ptarmigan,  but  it  was  probably  a  snipe.  It  ought  to  be 
remarked  that  during  the  two  days  which  we  spent  near  this 
"ice-hole"  we  never  once  saw  a  whale.  As  soon  as  with  half- 
closed  eyes  we  had  eaten  our  supper,  we  fell  fast  asleep,  for 
our  longing  to  sleep  was  yet  greater  than  our  exhaustion  and 
our  thirst.  The  dogs  availed  themselves  of  this  opportunity 
to  devour  several  pounds  of  bear's  flesh  and  empty  a  tin  of 
condensed  milk,  which,  however,  did  not  prevent  them  from 
barking  impudently  the  next  morning  for  more. 

12.  The   1 2th  of  April  was  the  last  day  of  advance  in  a 
northerly  direction.     Though  the  weather  was  not  clear,  yet 
it  was  clearer  than  it  had  been   for  some  time.     When  we 
started  we  buried  our  baggage  in  the  fissure  of  the  glacier 
where  we  had  slept,  in  order  to  protect  it  from  bears,  which 
roamed    about    on    all    sides.     Our   march    lay    over    snowy 
slopes  to  the  summits  of  the  coast  range — from  1,000  to  3,000 
feet    high.     The  masses  of   mist  lying  on  the  horizon   had 
retreated  before  the  rays  of  the   morning  sun,  and  all  the 
region  with  its  lines  of  ice-forms  was  bathed  in  light  ;  and 
southward,  open  water  stretched  to  the  shores  of  Cape  Felder. 
As  we  followed  this  lofty  coast  range,  mountains  with  glaciers 
sloping  down  their  sides  towards  the  sea  seemed  to  rise  before 
us.     An  hour  before  noon  we   reached  a  rocky   promontory 
1,200  feet  high,  afterwards  called  Cape  Germania.     Here  we 
rested,  and  from  a  meridian  observation  we  found  our  latitude 
to  be  81°  57'.     Following  the  coast  as  it  trended  towards  the 
north-east,  we  came  on  a  glacier  with  a  steep  inclination  and 
frequent   crevasses,  which  compelled  us  to  leave  the  sledge 
behind  before  we  attempted  to  cross  it.     But  the  increasing 
insecurity  of  our  track  over  fissures,  our  want  of  provisions, 
and  the  certainty  that  since  noon  we  had  reached  82°  5'  N.  L. 
by  a  march  of  five  hours,  at  last  brought  our  advance  north- 
ward to  a  close.     With  a  boat  we  might  certainly  have  gone 
some  miles  further. 

13.  We   now    stood   on    a    promontory  about    i-,ooo    feet 
high,   which   I    named    Cape   Fligely,    as    a  small    mark  of 


312  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

respect  and  gratitude  towards  a  man  of  great  distinction 
in  geographical  science.  Rudolf's  Land  still  stretched  in 
a  north-easterly  direction  towards  a  cape — Cape  Sherard 
Osborne— though  it  was  impossible  to  determine  its  further 
course  and  connection.  The  view  we  had  from  this  height 
was  of  great  importance  in  relation  to  the  question  of  an 
open  Polar  sea.  Open  water  there  was  of  considerable  extent 
and  in  very  high  latitudes  :  of  this  there  could  be  no  ques- 
tion. But  what  was  its  character  ?  From,  the  height  on 
which  we  stood  we  could  survey  its  extent.  Our  expecta- 
tions had  not  been  sanguine,  but  moderate  though  they  were, 
they  proved  to  be  exaggerated.  No  open  sea  was  there, 
but  a  "  Polynia "  surrounded  by  old  ice,  within  which  lay 
masses  of  younger  ice.  This  open  space  of  water  had  arisen 
from  the  action  of  the  long  prevalent  E.N.E.  winds.  But 
of  more  immediate  interest  than  the  question  of  an  open 
Polar  sea  was  the  aspect  of  blue  mountain-ranges  lying 
in  the  distant  north,  indicating  masses  of  land,  which  Orel 
had  partially  seen  the  day  before,  and  which  now  lay  before 
us  with  their  outlines  more  defined.  These  we  called  King 
Oscar  Land  and  Petermann  Land  ;  the  mountainous  ex- 
tremity on  the  west  of  the  latter  lay  beyond  the  83rd  degree 
of  north  latitude.  This  promontory  I  have  called  Cape 
Vienna,  in  testimony  of  the  interest  which  Austria's  capital 
has  ever  shown  in  geographical  science,  and  in  gratitude  for 
the  sympathy  with  which  she  followed  our  wanderings,  and 
finally  rewarded  our  humble  merits. 

14.  Proudly  we  planted  the  Austro-Hungarian  flag  for  the 
first  time   in   the  high -North,  our  conscience  telling  us  that 
we  had  carried  it  as  far  as  our  resources  permitted.     It  was 
no  act  asserting  a  right  of  possession  in  the  name  of  a  nation, 
as  when  Albuquerque  or  Van  Diemen  unfurled  the  standards 
of  their  country  on  foreign  soil,  yet  we  had   won  this  cold, 
stiff,  frozen  land  with  no  less  difficulty  than  these  discoverers 
had  gained  those  paradises.     It  was  a  sore  trial  to  feel  our 
inability  to  visit  the  lands   lying  before   us,  but  withal    we 
were    impressed  with  the  conviction  that  this  day  was  the 
most   important  of  our   lives,    and   ever   since  the   memory 
of  it  has  recurred  unbidden  to  my  recollection. 

15,  The   Dolerite   of  this   region  was    of    a   very   coarse- 


vm.J  IN  THE  EXTREME  NORTH.  313 

grained  character,  and  its  rocks  rose  in  terraces  from  out 
of  the  white  mantle  of  snow;  Umbilicaria  arctica,  Cetaria 
nivalisj  and  Rhyzocarpon  geographicum  were  the  sole  orna- 
ments of  its  scanty  vegetation.  The  following  document 
we  inclosed  in  a  bottle  and  deposited  in  a  cleft  of  rock : — 

"  Some  members  of  the  Austro-Hungarian  North  Pole 
Expedition  have  here  reached  their  highest  point  in  82-5° 
N.  L.,  after  a  march  of  seventeen  days  from  the  ship,  lying 
inclosed  in  ice  in  79°  51'  N.  L.  They  observed  open  water 
of  no  great  extent  along  the  coast,  bordered  by  ice,  reaching 
in  a  north  and  north-westerly  direction  to  masses  of  land, 
whose  mean  distance  from  this  highest  point  might  be  from 
sixty  to  seventy  miles,  but  whose  connection  it  was  impossible 
to  determine.  After  their  return  to  the  ship,  it  is  the  intention 
of  the  whole  crew  to  leave  this  land  and  return  home.  The 
hopeless  condition  of  the  ship  and  the  numerous  cases  of 
sickness  constrain  them  to  this  step. 

"Cape  Fligely,  April  12th,  1874. 

"  (Signed)        ANTONIO  ZANINOVICH,  Seaman. 
"  EDWARD  OREL,  Midshipman, 
"JULIUS  PAYER,  Commander'' 

22 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE   RETURN   TO  THE  SHIP. 

I.  Tins  done,  our  thoughts  now  turned  to  the  ship,  between 
which  and  ourselves  lay  160  miles.     But,  the  Tegetthoff—&\& 
she  lie  still  where  we  had  left  her,  or  had  she  drifted  away  ? 
Fastened  together  by  a  rope,   we  began  our  return  by  re- 
crossing  the  glaciers,   and   on   reaching   the   stores   we   had 
deposited  at  Cape   Germania,  the  first  thing  we  did  was  to 
prepare  some  water,  for  the  beverage  we  had  taken  with  us  in 
an  india-rubber  bottle,   made  of  coffee,  rum,  and  extract  of 
meat,   had   only   aggravated   thirst,   without   adding   to    our 
strength.     It  was  late  in  the  evening  when  we  reached  our 
night-encampment  near  Saulen  Cap  (Cape    Columns),    in    a 
state  of  great    exhaustion,    cheered    and    alleviated    by    the 
thought  of  our  success.     The    utter  loneliness  of  our    posi- 
tion   could    not    suppress    the    satisfaction    we    felt.       After 
digging  up  our  still   untouched    stores,  we  went  to   rest  for 
three  hours.     Longer  we  dared  not  sleep  ;  the  least  breeze 
might  break  up  the  ice  and  drive  it  out  of  the  bight  on  the 
north  of  Cape  Auk.     The  insecurity  of  our  position  there- 
fore impelled  us  to  make  a  very  early  start  on  the  morning 
of  the    1 3th  of  April,  with  the  thermometer  at    12°  F.     As 
we  started,  we  awoke  also  to  the  extreme  difficulties  of  the 
return  route,  difficulties  which  the  excitement  of  our  advance 
had    made    light    of.     Orel,    suffering    from    snow-blindness, 
marched  along    with  closed    eyes,  and    want  of   sleep    now 
began  to  tell  on   us  all.     Even  our  dogs  were  all  worn  out, 
and  whenever    a  halt  was   made  they  lay  down   exhausted 
in  the  snow.     The  sledge  had  constantly  to  be  unloaded  and 
reloaded,   and    its   fractures    repaired.      The   surface   of   the 


CHAP.  IX.] 


THE  RETURN  TO  THE  SHIP. 


315 


smooth  ice,  encumbered  by  the  snow-slush  which  had  accumu- 
lated on  it,  rendered  our  progress  very  burdensome.  The 
dull  dreary  weather,  however,  did  not  prevent  the  sea-birds 
from  gathering  and  wheeling  around  us  in  enormous  flocks. 
During  our  noon-day  halt,  utterly  distraught,  I  cooked  our 
dinner  with  sea-water ;  not  one  of  us  could  touch  it.  Our 
road  through  wastes  of  snow  from  Cape  Brorock  to  Cape 
Schrotter,  seemed  as  if  it  would  never  end.  However  rapidly 
we  advanced,  constantly  counting  our  steps  as  we  went  along, 


-MELTING   SNOW   ON    CAPE   GERMANIA. 


that  Cape  remained  for  hours  the  same  dark  spot  on  the 
gloomy  and  snowy  horizon.  It  was  evening  before  we 
approached  it,  and  as  we  came  within  300  paces  of  his  frontier^ 
we  were  received  and  welcomed  by  ambassadors  from  Haller. 
It  was  curious  and.  also  characteristic  to  observe  how  a  few 
days  without  active'  Employment  and  without  discipline  had 
demoralised  our  old  companions;  the  party  we  left  behind 
were  scarcely  recognisable.  Blackened  by  the  oil  used  in 
cooking,  wasted  with  diarrhoea,  these  men  crept  out  of  their 
tent  listlessly  to  greet  us  on  our  arrival  ;  a  few  more  days 
would  have  sufficed  to  prostrate  them  with  sickness.  Yet 


316  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 


they  had  strictly  followed  the  directions  I  had  given  them, 
and  had  used  with  moderation  their  stock  of  provisions.  As 
I  have  already  mentioned,  I  had  furnished  them,  before  I 
started  on  my  expedition  northward,  with  all  the  means  of 
ascertaining  their  position  by  observations,  and  of  enabling 
them  to  begin  their  return  to  the  ship,  in  the  event  of  my 
failing  to  appear  at  the  end  of  fifteen  days ;  but  when  I  now 
asked  them  what  direction  they  would  have  taken  in  order  to 
reach  the  Tegetthoff,  to  my  horror  they  pointed,  not  to  Austria, 
but  to  Rawlinson  Sound ! l 

2.  The  observations  of  temperature  which  Haller  furnished 
me  with,  scrawled  in  hieroglyphics  on  a  peas-sausage  case, 
showed  a  difference  of  about  4^°  in  favour  of  the  extreme 
north,  and  this  difference  was  still  more  marked,  when  we 
came  to  compare  the  readings  which  had  been  recorded  on 
board  ship.     The  open  water  to  the  north  was  doubtless  the 
cause  of  this.     But  the  same  influence  extended  southward, 
and  as  the  snow-drifts  over  which  we  walked  broke  under  us 
with  a  dull,  heavy  sound,  we  began  to  fear  lest  the  season 
when  the  snow  suddenly  thaws  and  the  land-ice  breaks  up 
had  begun,  and  that  our  return  would  be  a  matter  of  extreme 
difficulty.     If  there  had  been  nothing  else,  this  would  have 
sufficed  to  quicken  our  movements,  but  to  this  was  added  the 
discovery  that  our  stock  of  provisions,  independent  of  depots, 
would  last  only  ten  days  more.     By  ridding  ourselves  of  all 
but   absolutely  necessary  baggage,  and  leaving  behind   our 
common  sleeping  bag  and  the  tent  for  the  dogs,  we  lightened 
our  sledge,  so  as  to  enable  us  to  extend  our  day's   march 
considerably. 

3.  On  the  I4th  of  April,  the  thermometer  marking  4°  F., 
we  left  Hohenlohe  Island  in  very  bad  weather,  and  made  for 
the  Coburg  Islands,  which  were  scarcely  visible.     Our  route 
ran  between  hummocks,  which  gave  the  dogs  an  opportunity 
they  were  not  slow  to  use,  of  taking  it  ea^  after  their  recent 
exertions.     It  had  been  our  intention  mit  the  large  sledge 
should  keep  the  same  line  which  we  had  taken  in  our  journey 
northward,  while  I  with  the  dog-sledge  should  visit  places  to 

1  It  might  have  been  expected  that  seamen  would  have  been  acquainted  with 
the  use  of  the  compass,  though  the  instruments  they  had  at  their  command  were 
too  small  to  determine  the  declination  with  precision. 


IX.]  THE  RETURN  TO  THE  SHIP.  317 


the  right  and  left.  This  plan,  however,  was  found  unfeasible  ; 
for  in  addition  to  the  difficulties  and  impediments  incident  to 
the  march,  we  had  an  accumulation  of  evils  to  contend  with 
Klotz's  foot  had  become  much  worse,  and  all  those  who  had 
been  left  behind  at  Cape  Schrotter  were  more  or  less  snow- 
blind,  though  hitherto  our  party  had  suffered  little  from  eye 
diseases.  It  was  surprising  that  our  dogs  did  not  suffer  from 
this  affection,  close  as  they  were  to  the  glare  of  the  snow  and 
without  any  protection  against  it.  Snow-blindness  occurs 
even  in  Alpine  regions.  The  severity  of  the  attack  depends 
on  the  character  of  the  snow ;  the  harder  and  smoother  it  is, 
the  greater  is  the  reflection  and  the  danger  of  inflammation ; 
the  retina  of  the  eye  is  at  last  injured  by  the  dazzling  white- 
ness of  the  snow.  Various  remedies  have  been  employed  to 
mitigate  this  evil  ;  even  the  rough-and-ready  one  of  throwing 
snuff  into  the  eyes  has  been  tried.  In  Europe,  snow- blindness 
is  cured  in  a  day  or  two  by  wet  applications,  but  in  the  low 
temperatures  of  the  high  North  such  a  remedy  cannot  be 
applied ;  poultices  are  hardly  possible  in  the  tent,  and  a 
simple  bandage  worn  during  the  march  is  no  preservative 
against  the  constant  burning  sensations  common  to  this 
affection.  It  is  clear  that  the  range  of  remedies  during  a 
sledge  expedition  must  be  very  limited.  The  crew  of  Sir 
James  Clark  Ross  suffered  in  an  unusual  manner  from  this 
cause  in  their  land  expeditions.  Richardson  and  Nordenskjold 
dropped  a  weak  tincture  of  opium  twice  a  day  into  the  eye, 
and  in  about  twenty-four  hours  the  patient  recovered,  pro- 
vided he  were  not  compelled  to  march.  Parry  on  board  ship 
used  a  solution  of  sugar  of  lead  and  cold  water,  applied 
constantly  for  three  or  four  days — a  somewhat  questionable 
remedy,  as  it  is  apt  to  injure  the  cornea  of  the  eye.  Another 
mode  of  treatment,  which  should  take  effect  in  six  hours, 
is  unhappily  not  available  in  a  North  Pole  expedition,  as  it 
requires  white  of^gg,  sugar,  and  camphor,  beaten  up  till  it 
becomes  frothy,  aSfclaid  as  a  compress  on  the  eye.  Some 
tribes  of  North  America  use  the  steam  of  hot  water,  the 
Creek  Indians  a  decoction  from  the  resinous  buds  of  the 
Tacamahac — an  application  which  causes  much  suffering. 
The  only  real  preservative  is  the  constant  use  of  coloured 
spectacles,  the  metal  mountings  of  which  should  be  covered 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


with  wool,  on  account  of  the  cold.  The  ordinary  network 
at  the  side  should  be  avoided,  as  this  dims  the  glasses  even 
when  the  cold  is  not  considerable  ;  whereas  open  spectacles 
are  only  exposed  to  this  inconvenience  at  very  low  degrees 
of  temperature,  and  can  easily  be  cleared  by  the  hand. 

4.  But  to  return  to  our  journey.  It  was  evening  when  the 
Coburg  Islands  (81°  35'  N.  L.)  were  reached.  The  Dolerite 
rock  of  this  small  cluster  of  islands  was  of  a  remarkably 
coarse-grained  crystalline  texture.  We  had  frequently  come 
across  the  traces  of  bears  and  foxes  during  the  march  of  this 
day,  though  we  actually  saw  neither  bear  nor  fox.  On  the 


ENCAMPING  ON   ONE   OF   THE   COBURG   ISLANDS. 


1 5th  of  April,  after  a  severe  march,  we  got  clear  of  the  region 
of  ice-hummocks,  and  continued  our  southerly  course  with 
our  sledge-sail  before  the  wind.  We  encountered  a  bear  this 
day,  which,  being  allowed  to  approach  within  the  distance 
of  thirty  paces,  fell  dead  under  our  fire.  In  a  few  minutes  we 
loaded  the  sledge  with  fresh  meat,  and  again  pursued  our 
journey.  But  excessive  exertion,  the  want  of  sleep,  and  the 
exclusive  use  of  a  meat  diet,  were  meanwhile  telling  their 
tale  of  reduced  strength,  though  our  appetites  were  great 
almost  beyond  belief.  The  excessive  consumption  of  animal 
food  x  without  bread-stuff  excited  hunger  and  lowered  our 

1  Franklin,  speaking  of  his  experience  during  his  first  journey,  says  that  their 
diet  of  animal  food  had  rather  weakened  than  strengthened  their  powers.     An 


IX.]  THE  RETURN  TO  THE  SHIP.  319 

muscular  power,  while  it  irritated  our  nervous  system.  Our 
supply  of  bark  was  rapidly  decreasing,  and  Haller,  Sussich, 
and  Lukinovich,  who  could  not  endure  bear- flesh,  were  often 
attacked  with  giddiness  during  the  march,  and  placed  on 
"half-diet."  In  the  following  week  our  miseries  were  in- 
tensified by  insufficiency  of  sleep  ;  in  fact,  we  could  not  spare 
time  to  sleep  it  out.  Hence  the  afternoon  hours  of  the  march 
were  especially  oppressive,  and  though  the  sledge  with  its 
load  was  positively  lighter,  our  strength  to  drag  it  had  dimi- 
nished in  still  greater  measure.  It  would  be  a  great 
mistake  to  imagine  that  exercise  of  itself,  without  necessary 
rest,  increases  the  capacity  of  marching.  The  loss  of  strength 
is  almost  suddenly  experienced,  especially  in  return  journeys, 
when  the  excitement  of  discovery  has  passed  away,  and 
nothing  is  left  but  the  animal-like  employment  of  dragging. 

5>t  Our  course  lay  under  Andree  Island  ;  we  crossed  over 
the  flat  ice-dome  of  Rainer  Island,  and  on  the  west  saw 
Back's  Inlet  filled  with  many  icebergs.  From  this  elevation 
we  once  more  beheld  the  snowy  ranges  of  Crown-Prince 
Rudolf's  Land  in  the  far  distance,  which  soon,  however,  dis- 
appeared in  an  ocean  of  mist,  whose  white  waves  rolled  over 
the  intervening  ice-levels.  As  we  again  descended  to  the  icy 
surface  of  the  sea,  to  our  great  astonishment  we  fell  into 
a  hole  covered  over  with  snow,  and  got  thoroughly  wet,  and, 
after  much  wandering  about,  we  found,  towards  evening,  a 
dry  place  (81°  20'  N.  L.)  on  which  to  pitch  our  tent.  On  the 
1 6th  of  April  we  found  our  latitude  by  an  observation  taken 
at  noon  to  be  81°  12',  and  when  we  reached,  in  the  evening, 
a  point  four  miles  to  the  north  of  Cape  Hellwald,  those 
whose  appetite  had  failed  them  could  not  march  a  step 
further. 

6.  On  the  I7th  of  April,  Orel,  with  the  large  sledge,  con- 
tinued the  march  southwards,  while  I  went  on  with  the  dog- 
sledge,  in  order  to  ascend  Cape  Hellwald.  The  temperature 
had  fallen  in  the  morning  to  —  18°  F.,  and  the  outlines  of  the 
icebergs  vibrated  and  undulated  under  the  influence  of  refrac- 
tion. Ice-hummocks,  on  the  distant  horizon,  insignificant  in 

Eskimo,  on  the  other  hand,  often  consumes  20  Ibs.  of  the  flesh  of  a  seal  in  a  day, 
and  seems  to  thrive  on  it — a  proof  how  the  mode  of  living  of  a  savage  is  no  rule 
for  civilized  man. 


320  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

size,  were  magnified  into  gigantic  proportions;  then  again 
many  of  these  phantasmagoria  seemed  to  form  a  long  line, 
which  broke  up  at  the  next  step  forward.  Unyoking  the 
dogs  on  the  shore  of  the  island,  I  left  the  sledge  behind,  and 
climbed  the  steep  sides  of  a  precipice  of  clay-slate,  with  its 
laminae  firmly  frozen  into  a  mass,  and  reached  the  summit 
of  the  lofty  promontory — Cape  Hellwald — about  2,200  feet 
above  the  level  of  the  sea.  On  the  tops  of  its  basaltic 
columns  great  flocks  of  divers  congregated,  which  flew  round 
me  without  fear  as  I  set  up  my  theodolite,  and  then  settled 
close  to  me  on  the  snow.  I  might  have  killed  half-a-dozen  of 
them  at  a  single  shot.  By  and  by,  these  birds,  scared  by  the 
appearance  of  the  dogs,  who  soon  joined  me,  took  refuge 
on  some  inaccessible  rocks,  but  were  not  in  the  least  dis- 
turbed when  I  fired  at  them.  My  lofty  point  of  view 
enabled  me  to  have  a  general  survey  of  the  mountainous 
country  lying  on  the  north-west,  and  to  ascertain  that  I  stood 
on  an  island  separated  from  lands  on  the  west  by  Sternek 
Fiord.  Meantime  Orel;  far  below  me,  was  moving  on  with 
the  sledge,  but  so  great  is  the  advantage  of  dog-sledging, 
that  I  descended  and  arrived  at  the  same  time  as  he  did  at 
Cape  Easter.  By  an  observation  taken  at  noon  we  found 
our  latitude  to  be  81°.  In  the  afternoon  the  dogs  in  their 
own  sledge  dragged  .half  of  our  baggage,  and  notwithstanding 
got  on  more  quickly  than  we  did  with  the  large  sledge. 
Henceforward  the  order  of  the  day  was  fasting,  more  or  less 
absolute  ;  for  our  stock  of  provisions  consisted  of  bread  and 
bear's  flesh  for  two  days  and  a  half,  and  the  dogs  could  no 
longer  be  favoured  as  they  had  been. 

7.  At  a  few  miles'  distance  there  rose  before  us  the  rocky 
cones  of  Wiener  Neustadt  Island,  with  large  glaciers  descend- 
ing their  sides.  As  it  was  beyond  a  doubt  that  the  ascent  of 
one  of  these  conical  heights  would  open  up  an  extensive 
prospect,  I  fixed  on  the  imposing  Cape  Tyrol  as  the  most 
promising  for  an  ascent.  Accordingly,  on  the  iSth  of  April 
Haller  and  I  started,  and  after  a  toilsome  march  over  glaciers, 
reached  its  dark,  weather-worn  summit,  3,000  feet  above  the 
level  of  the  sea.  Even  here  we  perceived  the  traces  of  excre- 
ments of  the  fox,  from  whose  craft  the  birds  were  protected 
by  the  inaccessibility  of  the  places  where  they  bred.  Though 


IX.] 


THE  RETURN  TO  THE  SHIP. 


321 


we  had  cut  up  some  bullets  into  slugs,  we  refrained  from 
shooting  at  the  auks  and  divers  perched  on  the  rocks,  as  we 
saw  that  our  game  could  not  be  bagged  even  if  we  killed  them. 
Over  our  heads  was  spread  the  bright  sky,  below  us  a  very 
sea  of  mist,  in  which,  though  invisible  to  us,  Orel  was  wending 
his  way  towards  the  south.  The  distant  glacier  wastes  of 
Wilczek  Land  towered  aloft  on  the  east ;  a  cloudy  shade 
separated  the  heights  of  the  peninsula  of  La  Ronciere  from  the 
colourless  icy  wastes  of  Lindemann  Bay,  and  beyond  the 
picturesque  Collinson  Fiord  there  seemed  to  be  a  maze  of 
inlets  and  bights,  bare  rocks  and  broad  table-lands.  We 
bitterly  deplored  that  the  necessity  of  returning  to  the  ship 


THE  VIEW   FROM    CAPE   TYROL.      COLUNSON    FIORD — WIENER    NEUSTADT   ISLAND. 

prevented  us  from  penetrating  into  this  labyrinth  of  mountains 
and  sounds. 

8.  In  our  descent  we  passed  over  three  basaltic  terraces, 
and  came  upon  a  rocky  ledge  covered  with  a  thick  carpet  of 
Usnea  melaxantha — a  fresh  example  of  the  great  capability  of 
lichens  to  bear  extremes  of  temperature,  the  great  cold  of 
winter  and  the  burning  heat  of  the  rock  in  summer.  The 
mists  now  began  to  rise,  and  for  the  first  time  a  greenish 
landscape  without  snow  gleamed  out  of  the  depth,  on  which 
lay  the  warm  glow  of  the  sun.  The  scenery  seemed  to  belong 
to  the  Alps,  and  not  the  8ist  degree  of  North  Latitude.  The 
contrast  became  the  more  striking,  when  the  mists  rolled  away 
and  unveiled  the  icebergs  and  the  ice-filled  sound.  When 
we  reached  these  green  mountain  slopes  we  found  ourselves 


322  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

among  grasses,  the  lower  stalks  of  which  were  already 
beginning  to  be  green  ;  the  few  flowering  plants  (Saxifraga 
oppositifolia,  Silene  acaulis,  Papaver  nudicale)  were  clustered 
together  in  dense  masses.  We  were  now  able  to  form  some 
conception  of  what  summer  might  be  here.  Countless  streams 
issuing  from  the  snow  would  force  these  spots  to  put  on  the 
livery  of  summer,  and  rapid  torrents  would  precipitate  them- 
selves down  gorges  of  snow  and  rock  ;  but  at  present  all  was 
stiff  and  stark,  save  that  stunted  green  herbage  seemed  to 
show  that  we  were  in  the  fancied  paradise  of  Franz-Josef 
Land,  though  when  compared  even  with  other  Arctic  lands  it 
was  but  a  scene  of  desolation.  Closer  to  the  shore  above  the 
level  of  the  sea,  in  a  belt  of  yellow  sandstone,  we  found  much 
lignite  firmly  frozen  in  the  ground,  resembling  drift-wood  a 
century  old. 

9.  The  search  for  our  companions  was  for  some  time  fruit- 
less ;  and  a  driving  snow  might  have  separated  us  from  them 
for  ever.     At  last,  however,  we  found  them  gathered  together 
in  the  tent  near  Forbes'  Glacier,  in  about  80°  58'  N.   L.,  and 
as  the  party  had  been  without  tobacco  for  a  fortnight,  they 
greeted  Haller's  collection  of  lichens  as  a  welcome  substitute. 

10.  During  the  last  few  days  the  cold  had  sensibly  increased,- 
and  we  therefore  determined  to  sleep  during  the  day,  and  to 
walk  during  the  night.     Our  march  in  the  night  of  April   18 
was  a  memorable  one  to  us.     We  were  trudging  along  in  the 
face  of  a  strong  south-wester — which  was  extremely  distress- 
ing to  our  highly  sensitive  frozen  noses — and  striving  to  pro- 
tect the  soles  of  our  feet  by  the  rapidity  of  our  movement 
from  being  frost-bitten.     After  succeeding  to  a  certain  extent 
in  this,  we  began  to  find  the  snow  very  deep,  and  so  soft 
that  we  sank  in  at  every  step.     This  grew  worse  and  worse  ; 
water  rose  in  the  deeper  layers  of  snow  and  penetrated  our 
boots,  and  as  this  could  not  be  explained  by  the  state  of  the 
temperature,  we  had  to  step  with  distrust  and  hesitation,  in 
constant  fear  of  unseen  depths.     At  first  we  believed  that  the 
water  arose  from  streams  flowing  from  underneath  the  glaciers, 
or   from    the    movement    of   these  glaciers   breaking  up   the 
surface   of  the  ice.     Hence  we  kept  at  a  distance  from  their 
terminal  walls.     But  that  the  ice-sheet  of  the  sea  itself  had 
broken  up,  that  unseen  fissures  surrounded  us,  and  that  the 


IX.] 


THE  RETURN  TO  THE  SHIP. 


323 


water  under  the  snow  was  nothing  but  the  water  of  the  sea 
forcing  its  way  in — of  this  we  had  not  the  least  conception,  till 
the  sudden  immersion  of  the  leader  of  the  party  left  no  doubt 
about  the  matter.  Once  Haller  would  have  utterly  dis- 
appeared unless  he  had  been  quickly  rescued.  As  we  picked 
our  way  along,  even  with  a  long  pole  we  found  every  now 
and  then  no  bottom.  Klotz  now  took  the  lead  with  a  long 
"  alpenstock,"  guiding  us  with  the  greatest  dexterity  among 
these  fissures,  though  often  himself  falling  in.  Greatly  did  we 
rejoice  when  we  reached  unbroken  footing.  Some  of  the 
party  on  this  occasion  were  frost-bitten  in  the  feet,  but  we 


BREAKING   IN. 


could  do  little  more  for  them  than  rub  their  feet  with  snow 
and  improve  as  we  could  their  foot-covering.  The  sun  was 
now  visible  at  midnight,  and  the  mountains  of  Markham 
Sound  were  tinged  with  rosy  light. 

ii.  Ahead  of  us  in  the  south  lay  a  dark  water-sky,  while 
the  land  on  either  side  was  veiled  in  mist  and  fog.  We  tried 
to  persuade  ourselves  that  this  phenomenon  might  be 
explained  otherwise  than  by  open  water.  Soon,  however,  we 
heard  the  unambiguous  sound  of  ice-pressure  and  of  the 
beating  of  the  surf  at  no  great  distance,  and  when  we  went  to 


324  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  ix. 


rest,  in  80°  36'  N.  L.,  it  was  with  the  feeling  that  we  needed 
new  strength  to  meet  the  dangers  which  unquestionably 
awaited  us.  We  slept  soundly  for  some  hours  in  spite  of  all 
our  anxious  fears,  till  we  were  aroused  by  the  increasing  noise. 
We  now  advanced  along  the  old  sledge-track  upon  which  we 
had  fallen.  Orel  and  I  went  first,  and  after  we  had  gone  a 
few  hundred  paces  the  truth  burst  upon  us  :  we  saw  the  sea 
ahead  of  us  and  no  white  edge  beyond.  Walls  of  forced-up 
ice  surrounded  this  water,  which,  stirred  by  a  heavy  wind, 
threw  up  crested  waves  ;  the  spray  of  its  surf  dashed  itself 
for  a  distance  of  thirty  yards  over  the  icy  shore.  Forthwith 
ascending  an  iceberg,  we  looked  over  the  dark  waste  of  water, 
in  which  the  icebergs,  under  which  we  had  passed  a  month 
before,  were  now  floating  ;  the  more  distant  of  them  stood  out 
against  the  arch  of  light  on  the  horizon,  and  those  nearer  to 
us  shone  with  a  dazzling  brilliancy  under  the  dark  water-sky. 
That  on  which  lay  our  depot  of  provisions  was  floating  in  the 
midst  of  them  ;  and  here  we  were,  without  a  boat,  almost 
without  provisions,  and  fifty-five  miles  distant  from  the  ship  ! 
A  strong  current  was  running  southwards  at  the  rate  of  three 
or  four  miles  an  hour ;  fragments  of  ice  were  driving  before 
the  wind,  as  if  they  meant  to  delight  us  by  their  movements, 
and  as  if  there  were  no  change  for  the  worse  to  a  handful  of 
men,  who  stood  in  reality  before  an  impassable  abyss. 

12.  But  what  were  we  to  do;  what  direction  were  we  to 
follow  ?  If  we  killed  and  ate  our  dogs  and  broke  up  our 
sledge  to  find  wood  to  melt  the  snow,  we  might  live  for  eight 
days  longer.  In  this  case  we  must  ourselves  carry  our 
baggage.  But  the  most  important  question  was,  Whither  ? 
In  what  direction  did  the  ice  lie  still  unbroken  ?  Did  the 
land  on  the  west  afford  a  connected  route  to  the  ship  ?  Did  the 
sea  before  us  communicate  further  south  with  the  sea  where 
the  Tegetthoff  lay  ?  There  was  but  one  alternative — escape  by 
land  and  over  land ;  and  because  open  water  could  be  traced 
to  the  north-west  beyond  the  bare  reefs  of  the  Hayes  Islands, 
and  heavy  clouds  over  Markham  Sound  seemed  to  indicate  that 
the  ice  had  broken  up  in  it  also,  I  decided  to  try  the  way  over 
the  glaciers  of  Wilczek  Land.  Everything  depended  on  the  un- 
broken state  of  the  ice  in  the  southern  parts  of  Austria  Sound. 
Dejected  as  I  was,  I  finished  my  sketch  of  this  dreadful 


326 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


scene,  while  Orel  went  back  to  caution  the  men  against 
venturing  on  the  young  ice  and  to  tell  them  to  keep  to  the 
old  ice  under  the  land.  While  the  men  were  struggling  with 
the  great  sledge  in  the  snow,  I  descended  from  my  higher 
point  of  view,  and,  soaked  through  by  the  surf,  went  along 
the  ice-strand  in  a  south-easterly  direction  towards  Wilczek 
Land.  The  others  followed,  and  though  we  came  on  many 
fissures  merely  covered  with  snow,  we  yet  reached  terra  firma 
in  safety,  Orel  skilfully  guiding  the  movements  of  the  sledge 
according  to  the  signs  agreed  on. 


DRAGGING   THE   SLEDGE    UNDER   THE   GLACIERS    OF   WILCZEK    LAND. 

13.  But  soon  afterwards  everything  was  veiled  in  mist ;  the 
temperature  rose  to  7°  F.,  then  came  driving  snow,  which 
gradually  increased  to  a  snow-storm,  and  in  order  not  to  be 
cut  off  we  were  obliged  once  more  to  keep  together.  Dread- 
ful as  the  weather  was,  we  could  not  venture  to  put  up  the 
tent;  march  we  must,  in  order  to  escape  before  the  wind 
destroyed  the  ice-bridges  on  the^way  back.  We  trudged  along 
under  enormous  glacier  walls,  enveloped  in  whirling  snow. 
Sounding  all  round,  we  escaped  the  abysses  with  difficulty. 
We  could  scarcely  even  breathe  and  make  head  against  the 
wind.  Our  clothes  were  covered  with  snow,  our  faces  were 


IX.]  THE  RETURN  TO  THE  SHIP.  32? 

crusted  with  ice,  eyes  and  mouth  were  firmly  closed,  and  the 
dark  sea  beneath  us  was  hidden  from  our  view.     We  ceased 
to  hear  even  its  roar,  the  might  of  the  storm  drowning  every- 
thing else.     Haller,  a  few  paces  ahead,  continually  sounded, 
so  as  to  keep  us  clear  of  fissures.     We  could  scarcely  follow 
him    or  recognise  his  form.     We  saw  nothing  even  of  the 
enormous  glacier  walls  under  which  we  toiled  along,  except 
that  at  times  we  caught   a  glimpse  of  them  towering  aloft. 
At   every   hundred   paces   we  halted  for  a  few   minutes  to 
remove  the  ice  which  formed  itself  on  our  eyes  and  round  our 
mouths.     We  stilled  our  hunger  with  the  hope,  that  we  should 
find  and  dig  out  the  body  of  the  bear  which  we  had  shot  a 
month  ago.     But  we  dared  not  rest,  nor  await  the  abatement 
of  the  storm,  until  we  had   crossed  the  glacier  and  felt  the 
firm  ground,  free  from  ice,  beneath  our  feet.     This  we  com- 
passed after  a  march  of  seven  hours.     Utterly  exhausted,  we 
then  put  up  the  tent  on  a  stony  slope,  got  beneath  it,  white 
with  snow,  wet  through  and  stiffened  with  ice ;  notwithstand- 
ing our  hunger,  we  lay  down  to  sleep  without  eating.     Not  a 
morsel  of  bread  could  we  venture  to  serve  out  from  the  small 
stock   of    provisions    that    remained.       Our   prospects   were 
gloomy   in   the    extreme.     If  open  water,   or  even  a  broad 
fissure  at   Cape  Frankfort,  separated  us  from  the  ship,  we 
must  inevitably  perish  on  the  shores  of  Wilczek  Land. 

14.  The  snow-storm  still  continued  to  rage;  hunger,  cold, 
and  moisture  forbade  sleep,  and  the  dogs,  covered  with  snow, 
lay  in  front  of  the  tent.  On' the  2Oth  of  April  (the  thermo- 
meter marking  3°  R),  after  a  breakfast  more  suited  for  a 
patient  under  typhus  fever  than  for  men  hungry  as  wolves, 
we  left  the  tent  in  our  still  wet  clothes,  and  while  standing  on ' 
its  sheltered  side  to  wait  till  it  was  cleared,  our  clothes  froze 
into  coats  of  mail.  As  we  went  on,  the  terrible  weather  blew 
out  of  us  almost  all  that  remained  of  our  courage  and  resolu- 
tion. It  was  evening  before  the  storm  abated,  but  we  had  the 
good  fortune  to  find  the  iceberg  with  our  last  depot  in  its 
former  position  close  to  the  shore.  There  were  the  45  Ibs.  of 
boiled  beef,  and  there,  too,  the  bear  lying  two  feet  deep  in 
snow.  It  took  us  an  hour  to  dig  him  out  and  load  our  sledge 
with  this  frozen  mass,  which  we  were  glad  to  call  provision. 
After  each  of  us  had  devoured  3  Ibs.  of  boiled  beef  and  bear's 


CHAP.  IX.  J 


THE  RETURN  TO  THE  SHIP. 


329 


flesh,  on  we  went.  To  our  inexpressible  joy  the  open  water 
had  retreated  to  the  west,  and  we  were  able  to  get  round  it  by 
making  a  considerable  bend.  The  numerous  fissures  which 
crossed  our  path  we  succeeded  in  evading,  and  by  ascending 
icebergs  were  able  to  pick  fcur  way,  till  at  last  we  arrived 
safely  at  Cape  Frankfort  (80°  20'  N.  L.).  At  its  base  we 
found,  to  our  great  satisfaction,  the  land-ice  running  without 
break  towards  the  ship.  This  amounted,  in  fact,  to  deliver- 
ance, and  we  celebrated  our  joy  at  the  event  by  a  glass  of 
grog.  The  next  thing  to  be  done  was  to  search  for  the  depot 
of  provisions  on  Schonau  Island. 


DIGGING   OUT    THE   DEPOT. 


15.  On  the  2 ist  of  April  (the  thermometer  marking  -  7°  F.) 
Orel  led  with  the  large'sledge,  while  I  remained  behind  with 
the  dog-sledge,  in  order,  from  an  elevation  at  Cape  Frankfort, 
to  complete  the  measurement  of  certain  angles  indispensable 
for  the  maps  I  was  constructing.  We  joined  company  again 
nearly  opposite  Cape  Berghaus,  and  together  crossed  a  broad 
reach  covered  with  ice-hummocks.  The  weather  was  clear, 
and  brilliantly-marked  parhelia  hung  over  the  dark  blue 
background  of  the  mountains.  We  again  came  on  very  deep 
snow,  and  as  we  advanced  with  much  difficulty  and  great 
exertion,  we  got  rid  of  the  bear,  after  we  had  cut  off  from  it 
23 


330  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

every  portion  that  could  be  used  for  food.  The  relief,  how- 
ever, was  not  great,  and  we  were  repeatedly  compelled  to  halt 
and  rest.  Lukinovich  and  the  much-enduring  Zaninovich 
were  taken  with  fainting-fits,  the  consequence  of  their  exces- 
sive exertions.  Indeed  we  were  all  more  or  less  faint  and 
emaciated.  During  one  of  these  halts,  in  order  to  quicken 
their  failing  energies,  I  held  forth  to  them  on  the  astonishing 
example  of  MacClintock's  sledge  journeys.  The  Dalmatians 
freely  expressed  their  admiration  of  those  Englishmen,  but 
the  Tyrolese  were  rather  slow  to  believe. 

1 6.  Soon  after  midnight  on  the  22nd  of  April  (the  ther- 
mometer standing  at -6°  F.)  we  reached  Schonau  Island, 
round  which  the  ice  had  broken  up,  so  that  we  frequently  fell 
into  the  fissures.  As  we  erected  our  tent,  the  sun  was  setting 
behind  the  violet-coloured  edges  of  the  ice-hummocks,  while 
the  lofty  pinnacle  of  Cape  Berghaus  stood  out  sharply  marked 
against  the  sky.  The  situation  of  the  island  wre  had  reached 
being  extremely  favourable,  on  the  highest  point  of  it,  I  took 
some  observations,  which  completed  the  surveys  which  I  had 
made  during  this  expedition.  Close  to  the  eastward  of  us, 
the  ice  had  broken  up  round  Hochstetter  Island.  Orel  had 
meanwhile  put  up  the  tent,  and  Klotz  had  dug  out  the  depot 
of  provisions,  which,  to  our  great  joy,  we  found  had  not  been 
disturbed  by  bears.  The  danger  of  starvation  was  at  an  end, 
and  after  satisfying  the  claims  of  hunger  we  enjoyed  a 
delicious  sleep  of  seven  hours,  and  again  set  forth.  We  were 
still  twenty-five  miles  from  the  ship.  This  distance  I  now 
determined  to  compass  with  the  dog-sledge  with  all  the  speed 
possible,  in  order  to  ascertain  whether  the  Tegetthoff  remained 
where  we  left  her.  Orel  was  to  follow  close  with  the  large 
sledge.  The  day  was  of  unusual  brightness.  All  the  land, 
which  a  month  ago  had  been  the  home  of  storms  and  enveloped 
in  snow,  now  shone  in  the  sunlight,  and  the  walls  of  rock  wore 
their  natural  brown  colour.  My  route  lay  close  under  Kol- 
dewey  and  Salm  Islands.  At  first  every  fragment  which  had 
fallen  from  a  glacier  on  either  of  these  islands  was  used  as  a 
pretext  by  the  dogs  for  turning  out  of  the  course,  and  the 
trail  of  a  bear  seemed  quite  to  distract  them.  It  was  to 
little  purpose  that  I  went  on  first  to  show  them  the  way.  No 
sooner  was  the  least  liberty  allowed  them,  than  they  used  it 


IX.] 


THE  RETURN  TO  THE  SHIP. 


331 


to  make  now  for  Cape  Tegetthoff,  then  for  Cape  Berghaus, 
and,  in  preference  to  every  other  point,  for  the  sun!  Ever 
and  anon  Torossy  dragged  Jubinal  out  of  the  road,  and  this 
unruliness  lasted  till  we  came  on  the  old  sledge  track,  which 
was  almost  obliterated  by  the  snow.  Suddenly  they  seemed 
to  feel  as  if  they  had  entered  on  a  familiar  region.  With  their 
heads  raised,  and  tails  in  the  air,  they  now  rushed  along  at 
the  rate  of  180  paces  in  a  minute,  though  I  had  now  taken 
my  place  on  the  sledge.  The  south-west  corner  of  Salm 
Island  was  beset  by  a  crowd  of  apparently  stranded  icebergs. 


THE    MIDNIGHT   SUN    BETWEEN    CAPE    BERGHAUS   AND    KOLDEWEY    ISLAND. 

Under  the  sheltered  side  of  one  of  these  colossal  masses  I 
made  a  short  halt,  and  lighted  the  cooking-machine  to  thaw 
some  boiled  beef,  and  enjoy  a  meal  in  common  with  my 
canine  companions,  who  regarded  all  my  movements  with 
fixed  attention.  Just  as  I  was  intently  observing  a  small 
dark  point  on  the  horizon  advancing  in  my  direction — it  was 
Orel  and  his  party — the  iceberg,  in  whose  stability  I  was 
placing  complete  confidence,  suddenly  capsized,  and,  rolling 
on  to  the  ice,  shivered  into  fragments.  In  an  instant  I  was 
surrounded  by  fissures,  pools  of  water,  and  rolling  pieces  of 


332 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


ice.  Seizing  the  cooking-machine,  which  I  had  lighted,  I 
escaped  with  great  difficulty.  I  had  often  observed,  that  icebergs 
were  surrounded  by  circles  of  shattered  surface-ice,  with  sea- 
water  standing  in  their  fissures.  The  overturning  of  icebergs, 
which  occurs,  I  apprehend,  more  frequently  than  is  generally 
imagined,  easily  accounts  for  the  fact.  It  is  therefore  advisable 
to  shun  the  immediate  neighbourhood  of  an  iceberg  when  the 
tent  has  to  be  erected,  and  to  avoid  using  the  iceberg  itself  as 
a  place  for  a  depot  of  provisions. 

17.  When  I  turned  into  the  narrow  passage  between  Salm 
and  Wilczek  Islands,  Orgel  Cape,  visible  at  a  great  distance, 


THE  "TEGETTHOFF"  DESCRIED. 


was  the  only  dark  spot  in  the  scene.  At  once  the  dogs  made 
for  it,  and  about  midnight  I  arrived  there.  A  few  hundred 
steps  further,  and  I  should  stand  on  the  top  of  it,  and  see  the 
ship,  if  ship  were  there.  With  an  anxious,  heavy  heart,  I  then 
began  the  ascent.  A  stony  plateau  stretched  before  me. 
With  every  advancing  step,  made  with  increasing  difficulty, 
the  land  gradually  disappeared,  and  the  horizon  of  the  frozen 
sea  expanded  before  me — an  immeasurable  white  waste.  No 
ship  was  to  be  seen — no  trace  of  man  for  thousands  of  miles, 
save  a  cairn,  with  the  fragments  of  a  flag  fluttering  in  the 
breeze,  and  a  grave  covered  with  snow-drifts.  Still  I  climbed 


IX.]  THE  RETURN  TO  THE  SHIP.  333 

. 

on.  Suddenly  three  slender  masts  emerged — I  had  found  the 
ship  :  there  she  lay  about  three  miles  off,  appearing  on  the 
frozen  ocean  no  bigger  than  a  fly.  The  snow-drifts  and 
icebergs  around  her  had  hitherto  concealed  her  from  my  eye. 
I  directed  my  telescope  towards  her,  and  every  spar  and  sail 
I  saw  seemed  to  promise  a  happy  conclusion  to  our  expedi- 
tion. I  held  the  heads  of  the  dogs  towards  the  ship,  and 
pointed  with  my  arm  to  where  she  lay,  that  they  might  share 
in  my  joy.  We  soon  descended,  and  took  our  way  towards 
her.  At  about  a  hundred  yards  off  the  watch  detected  us. 
All  on  board  but  the  men  who  composed  it  were  asleep,  for  it 


was  night.  At  first  they  were  exceedingly  alarmed  to  see 
me  alone,  but  having  calmed  their  apprehensions,  I  went  down 
at  once  into  the  cabin  to  awaken  the  sleepers.  Great  was  the 
joy  caused  by  the  account  of  the  high  latitude  we  had  reached, 
and  of  the  discoveries  we  had  made,  which  I  endeavoured  to 
explain  by  the  rough  outline  of  a  map  which  I  sketched.  In 
a  few  hours  the  stock  of  questions  was  answered  and 
exhausted,  and  everyone  now  left  the  ship  to  welcome  the 
approaching  party,  which  was  soon  descried  with  the  sledge- 
flag  flying.  Hearty  and  joyful  were  the  mutual  greetings  ; 
and  the  appetite  of  the  emaciated  adventurers  occupied  this 
night  and  for  a  week  afterwards,  all  the  attention  of  the  rest 
of  the  crew.1  We  formed  a  strange  group  to  look  upon,  but 

1  Our  food,  which  we  always  took  as  hot  as  possible,  had  made  our  tongues  and 
gums  as  hard  as  leather,  so  that  we  could  not  discriminate  what  we  ate.  Our  great 
desire  was  not  for  flesh,  but  for  white  bread,  potatoes,  and  milk. 


334  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

Klotz  carried  off  the  palm  from  us  all.  He  had  never  shown 
any  weakness  in  counteracting  the  effects  of  weather  and 
exposure  on  his  motley  garments.  His  cap,  a  wondrous 
piece  of  patchwork,  resembled  the  winged  helmet  of  a  knight- 
errant,  and  of  his  boots  nothing  remained  but  the  feet,  over 
which  hung  the  legs  of  them  in  shreds  and  tatters.  Carlsen, 
when  he  saw  him  stepping  along  proudly  and  silently,  forgot 
for  a  moment  his  walruses,  and  compared  him  to  Saint  Olaf, 
who  could  find  only  one  horse  in  "  Gulbrandsdalen "  strong 
enough  to  carry  him. 

1 8.  During  our  absence  the  greatest  activity  had  reigned 
on  board  ship.  Weyprecht  and  Brosch  had  finished  their 
magrietical  observations,  and  measured  on  the  ice  the  base, 
which  I  have  already  mentioned,  for  the  trigonometrical 
portion  of  my  surveys.  The  crew  had  begun  the  equipment 
of  the  boats  for  our  return  to  Europe,  and  packed  up  the 
provisions  in  water-tight  cases.  The  number  of  the  sick  had 
diminished ;  the  frost-bites  had  yielded  to  a  persevering  course 
of  poultices  and  baths.  The  only  unpropitious  circumstance 
was  the  accident  which  had  befallen  Stiglich,  who  had  shattered 
his  right  arm  by  accidentally  discharging  a  rifle.  Sores  and 
wounds  in  Arctic  regions  are  difficult  to  heal,  and  especially 
during  the  winter.  Thanks  to  the  care  of  our  physician, 
Stiglich's  severe  wound  healed  more  quickly  than  many  a 
slighter  injury  during  the  cold  period  of  the  year.  The 
sanitary  condition  had  essentially  improved,  owing  to  the  rich 
supplies  of  fresh  meat  afforded  by  the  chase.  Even  before 
our  arrival  the  ship's  company  had  killed  several  bears. 
Scarcely  a  day  now  passed  without  a  bear  coming  near  the 
ship.  On  the  25th  of  April  we  shot  one  in  the  act  of  tearing 
down  with  his  fore-paws  a  cask  sticking  in  the  ice,  and  on  the 
following  day  another  fell  a  victim  to  the  curious  attention 
with  which  he  was  regarding  some  meat  packed  in  a  tin  case. 
Birds  also,  especially  divers,  appeared  in  greater  numbers ; 
the  cliffs  of  Wilczek  Island  were  no  longer  desolate  as  before. 
Hence  it  was  that  we  indulged  Jn  dishes  of  stewed  birds  and 
roasted  bear's-flesh.  We  had  brought  with  us  seven  bears' 
tongues  ;  each  day  brought  an  accession,  and  our  culinary  art 
exercised  itself  on  the  refined  preparation  of  bears'  tongues, 
which,  together  with  the  brains  of  this  animal,  were  esteemed 


ix.]  THE  RETURN  TO  THE  SHIP.  335 

the  greatest  delicacies.  Weyprecht,  according  to  agreement, 
had  caused  a  boat  and  provisions  for  three  months  to  be  put 
on  shore,  intended  for  the  use  of  the  sledge-party  in  the  event 
of  the  ship  being  driven  from  her  moorings.  As  these  pre- 
cautionary measures  could  now  be  dispensed  with,  the  boat 
and  all  these  provisions  were  removed  to  the  ship.  Later 
experience  proved  that  the  exploring  party  could  not  have 
escaped  in  this  manner,  for  the  united  strength  of  three-and- 
twenty  men  was  required  to  raise  and  place  such  a  boat  on  a 
sledge. 


CHAPTER  X.   ; 

THE  THIRD  SLEDGE  JOURNEY. 

I.  THE  weather  during  the  last  days  of  April  was  truly 
delightful ;  calms  and  bright  sunshine  made  work  and  exercise 
in  the  open  air  exceedingly  pleasant,  and  the  temperature 
never  fell  below -2°  F.  But  even  this  amount  of  cold  was 
sufficient  to  retard  the  softening  of  the  snow  for  some  days, 
and  favoured  the  carrying  out  of  a  third  sledge  expedition. 
Its  intention  was  the  exploration  of  the  western  portions  of 
Franz-Josef  Land  ;  for  the  question  of  its  extension  towards 
Spitzbergen  was  scarcely  less  interesting  than  its  extension 
towards  the  North.  I  should  have  liked  to  devote  weeks  to 
the  undertaking,  but  our  impending  return  left  a  few  days  only 
at  my  disposal. 

2.  On  the  2Qth  of  April  (the  thermometer  marking  —  2°  F.) 
Lieutenant  Brosch,  Haller,  and  myself  left  the  ship.  Jubinal 
and  Torossy  were  selected  to  drag  the  small  sledge,  which  was 
equipped  for  a  week's  expedition  ;  Pekel  accompained  us  as  a 
volunteer.  The  measurement  of  the  angles  necessary  to  com- 
plete my  survey  detained  us  so  long  on  the  heights  of  Wilczek 
Island,  that  we  could  not  make  our  start  on  the  level  ice  till 
the  next  morning.  The  power  of  the  sun  some  days  was  so 
great,  that  the  temperature  of  the  tent  at  noon,  when  there 
was  no  wind,  rose  to  63°  F.,  while  in  the  two  preceding 
months  it  was  from  10°  F.  to  -  13°  F.  If  the  temperature 
during  the  day  did  not  fall  more  than  6°  below  freezing-point, 
we  required  no  clothes  beyond  our  woollen  underclothing  and 
stockings.  As  we  started  in  the  morning  of  April  30,  some 
snow  fell,  and  the  mountains  were  covered  with  masses  of 
mist,  which  lay  in  horizontal  layers  half  way  up  their  sides. 


CHAP,  x.]  THE  THIRD  SLEDGE  JOURNEY.  337 

Cape  Briinn,  however,  which  was  our  goal,  lay  before  us,  clear 
and  distinct,  and  the  long  glacier  walls,  running-  to  the  west 
of  it  round  the  edge  of  MacClintock  Island,  were  under  the 
constant  play  of  refraction,  and  could  be  traced  as  far  as 
Cape  Oppolzer,  from  which  point  they  seemed  to  trend  to  the 
north-west. 

3.  The  snow-track  of  the  Sound  was  still  firm,  so  that  our 
dogs  needed  little  help  in  dragging  our  baggage,  especially 
after   we   had    buried    provision    for    the   return  journey   in 
an  iceberg.     We  had   scarcely  finished  this  labour  when  we 
discovered  a  bear's  hole  in  the  layer  of  snow  at  its  base,  and 
immediately    afterwards    we    beheld     its    occupant     coming 
furiously  towards  us.     Several  hasty  shots  were  fired  at  him, 
but    the    bear    escaped,   though    evidently    wounded.      The 
nearer  we   approached    MacClintock    Island;   the   more  fre- 
quently we  found  fissures  in  the  ice  running  parallel  to  the 
coast    and    communicating   with    a   small    "  ice-hole "  in  the 
south   about  four  miles  off.     Trusting,  however,  that  during 
the  next  few  days  these  fissures  would  not   open   so    much 
as  to  prevent  our  re-crossing  them,  we  went  on  and  pitched 
our    encampment    near   the   terminal   front   of    one   of    the 
glaciers  of  the  island. 

4.  Our  dogs  continued  now,  as  before,  the  implacable  enemies 
of  bears.     Matotschkin's  sad    end  had   not  frightened   them 
into  prudence  and  caution,  doubtless  because  they  counted 
on  our  prowess  against  the  common  foe.     To  them  nothing 
could  be  a  more  joyous  spectacle  than  a  wounded  bear.     If 
in  his  flight  he  became  faint  and  exhausted  they  surrounded 
him,  bit  at  his  legs,  and   did  all  they  could  to  prevent   his 
getting  away,  and  courage,  as  well  as  love  of  mischief,  was 
visible  in  all  their  actions.     Pekel,  small  as  he  was,  was  the 
leader  in  all  attacks,  and  Torossy  grew  under  his  tuition  to  be 
at   length    a    formidable   assailant.     So   things   proved  now. 
While  we  were   busily  preparing  our  supper   in  the   tent   a 
young   bear  appeared   on   the  scene ;  before  we  could   stop 
them,  out  rushed  the  dogs  on  our  visitor,  who  at  first  retreated, 
while  the  dogs  followed  hard  on  his  heels.     As  it  generally 
happened  that  the  bear,  after  a  time,  turned  on  his  pursuers 
and  gave  them    chase,  we  were    somewhat   alarmed    for   the 
safety  of  the  dogs,  especially  of  Torossy,  who  sometimes  was 


338 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


so  stupid  as  not  to  find  his  way  back  to  the  tent  without 
guidance.  Just  as  we  expected,  the  bear  turned  and  became 
the  pursuer;  Torossy  taking  the  lead  in  the  retreat.  Our 
small  stock  of  cartridges  and  superfluity  of  bears'-flesh  might 
have  induced  us  to  gaze  at  him  while  he  gazed  on  us,  if  he 
had  only  kept  at  a  respectful  distance ;  but  he  would  come 
too  near,  and  reluctantly  we  found  ourselves  under  the  necessity 
of  killing  him  and  depriving  him  of  the  dainty  morsel  of  his 
tongue.  Forster  says  that  the  flesh  of  the  Polar  bear  tastes 
like  bad  beef,  an  opinion  which  we  are  able  to  endorse  and 
confirm,  as  we  had  consumed  in  this  expedition  about  four 
bears  apiece. 

5.  On  the  ist  of  May  (the  thermometer  standing  at  4°  F.) 
we   purposed    to    cross  the  Simony  glacier  and  ascend  the 


MARKHAM   SOUND,    RICHTHOFEN    PEAK    FROM    CAPE   BRUNN. 

pyramid-like  Cape  Briinn,  whence  we  might  hope  to  see  at  a 
glance  as  much  of  the  surrounding  country  as  would  have 
required  a  journey  of  several  days  on  the  level  to  discover. 
Unfavourable  weather,  however,  prevented  the  execution  of 
this  project,  and  we  were  obliged  to  keep  in  our  tent.  Lieu- 
tenant Brosch,  whose  duties  in  taking  magnetical  observations 
stood  in  the  way  of  his  accompanying  me  in  the  previous 
expeditions,  had  now  the  misfortune  to  injure  his  foot;  and  in 
consequence  of  this  accident  I  had  to  start  next  morning 
(May  2)  accompanied  only  by  Haller,  to  attempt  the  ascent. 
Fastened  together  with  a  rope,  we  passed  over  the  Simony 
glacier  amid  heavy  snow-storms  from  the  W.N.W.,  and 


x.]  THE  THIRD  SLEDGE  JOURNEY.  339 


in  a  zigzag  course  went  up  the  steep  pyramid  of  Cape 
Briinn.  Never  have  I  made  a  more  disagreeable  ascent. 
A  steep^  snowy  gorge  led  through  a  crown  of  rocks  to 
the  summit,  which  we  reached  after  a  march  of  five  hours. 
By  an  aneroid  observation  we  found  the  height  to  be  2,500 
feet. 

6.  If  the  ascent  of  a  mountain  in  the  face  of  wind  and 
penetrating  cold  demands  all  the  self-command  even  of  men 
the  most  inured  to  fatigues,  it  required  the  additional  stimulus 
afforded  by  the  view  of  an  unknown  land  to  give  us  endurance 
and  energy  under  such  circumstances,  to  sketch,  to  take 
azimuth  measurements,  and  estimate  the  distances  of  import- 
ant localities.  To  add  to  our  difficulties,  the  theodolite  was 
constantly  shaken  by  the  wind,  so  that  every  angle  had  to  be 
observed  repeatedly,  in  order  that  an  available  mean  value 
might  be- obtained.  It  was  only  after  several  hours  of  the 
most  severe  labour  that  my  work  was  completed.  My 
attention  was  directed  chiefly  to  the  southern  parts  of  Zichy 
Land,  which  formed  a  vast  mountainous  region  beyond  Mark- 
ham  Sound.  Half  the  horizon  was  bounded  by  cliffs  and 
heights  gleaming  with  snow.  The  conical  shape  of  the 
mountains  prevailed  here  also ;  the  only  exception  was  Rich- 
thofen  Spitze,  the  loftiest  summit,  perhaps,  we  had  seen  in 
Franz-Josef  Land,  which  rose  like  a  slender  white  pyramid 
to  the  height  of  about  5,000  feet.  The  land  was  everywhere 
intersected  by  fiords  and  covered  with  glaciers.  Its  boundaries 
towards  Spitzbergen,  or  Gillis'  Land,  could  not  be  determined, 
because  even  at  the  distance  of  seventy  or  ninety  German 
miles;  mountain  ranges  were  distinctly  to  be  traced.  It  would 
appear,  therefore,  that  masses  of  land  stretch  in  this  direction 
to  at  least  the  fiftieth  degree,  perhaps  even  to  the  forty-eighth 
degree,  of  east  longitude.  We  also  discovered,  that  the  lands 
on  the  south  of  Markham  Sound  were  separated  by  a  fiord — 
Negri  Sound.  This  was  already  open,  and  since  some  darker 
spots  indicated  fissures  in  the  ice  in  Markham  Sound,  it  is 
probable  that  sledge-journeys  can  be  only  undertaken  early  in 
the  spring  in  Franz-Josef  Land  without  the  danger  of  being 
cut  off.  At  the  time  when  we  made  our  observations,  it  was 
utterly  impossible  that  such  waters  could  be  navigated  by 
any  ship,  not  even  if  she  could  be  placed  amid  these  small 


340  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  x. 

unconnected  "ice-holes."  Haller,  whose  rheumatic  tenden- 
cies unfitted  him  to  bear  wind  and  cold,  had,  meanwhile, 
posted  himself  in  a  cleft  of  rock  sheltered  from  the 'wind 
beneath  the  summit,  but  I  was  quite  satisfied  with  his  running 
to  my  help,  in  order  to  rub  my  frozen  hands  with  snow, 
when  I  was  forced  to  drop  the  book  in  which  I  recorded  my 
labours. 

7.  But  however  great  our  delight  at  the  discovery  of  these 
unknown  lands — trophies  of  our  endurance — we  were  much 
discouraged  by  the  view  .towards  the  south.  An  enormous  sur- 
face of  ice  extended  before  us — a  sad  outlook,  as  we  thought 
of  our  return  homeward.  Although  one  single  serpentine 
thread  of  water,  gleaming  in  the  sun,  stretched  towards 
the  south-east,  separating  the  land-ice  from  the  field-ice, 
yet  it  -was  but  too  certain  that  the  next  breeze  from  the  south 
would  again  close  it.  All  save  this  was  a  close  sheet  of  ice. 
We  spent  some  time  in  exploring  the  lower  glacier  region  of 
the  island,  so  that  it  was  towards  evening  before  we  reached 
the  tent.  Much  as  we  desired  to  prosecute  our  explorations, 
reflection  forced  us  to  limit  them.  In  order  to  penetrate  in  a 
north-westerly  direction  several  days  would  have  been  needed ; 
but  as  it  had  been  arranged  that  we  must  at  once  begin  our 
return  to  Europe,  we  were  constrained  to  abandon  the  thought 
of  such  a  scheme  and  return  at  once  to  the  ship.  On  the 
night  of  the  2nd  of  May  we  began  our  forced  march  of  two- 
and-twenty  hours,  during  which  we  were  often  bathed  in 
perspiration,  though  the  temperature  on  the  3rd  of  May  varied 
between  5°  F.  and  —  4°  F.  The  dogs  alone  drew  the  sledge  with 
ease,  though  it  carried  a  load  of  3  cwt.,  giving  us  such  a 
striking  example  of  what  they  could  do,  that  we  felt  persuaded 
that  a  sledge,  with  a  strong  team  of  dogs,  must  be  the  best 
form,  beyond  comparison,  of  sledge-travelling.  In  the  even- 
ing we  reached  the  Tegetthoff,  and  our  sledge  expeditions 
came  to  a  close,  after  we  had  travelled  in  this  fashion  about 
450  miles. 


THE    "TEGETTHOFF"   ABANDONED: 
RETURN    TO    EUROPE. 


CHAPTER  I. 

LAST  DAYS   ON  THE   "  TEGETTHOFF." 

I.  WE  could  now  return  with  honour.  The  observations  and 
discoveries  we  had  made  could  not  be  wrested  from  us,  and 
our  many  anxieties  on  this  ground  were  at  an  end,  henceforth 
the  greatest  evil  that  could  befall  us  was  death  on  our  home- 
ward voyage.  The  intervening  days  were  given  up  to  the 
recruiting  of  our  exhausted  powers  ;  Klotz  called  this  time 
the  "plundering  of  the  ship."  Not  very  much  time,  indeed, 
was  left  for  this,  but  the  short  spell  of  good  living,  in  which 
we  all  shared,  transformed  the  ship  into  an  abode  of  Epicureans. 
But  withal  we  redoubled  our  diligence  to  secure  the  results  of 
our  toils  and  labours.  Lieutenant  Weyprecht  deposited  our 
meteorological  and  magnetical  readings,  the  log-books  and  the 
ship's  papers,  in  a  chest  lined  with  tin,  and  soldered  it  down, 
and  a  few  days  afterwards  I  made  exact  duplicates  of  the 
surveys,  and  of  measurements,  which  I  had  taken.  I  took 
especial  care  so  to  prepare  these,  that  another  person  might 
be  able  to  construct  from  them  a  map  of  Franz-Josef  Land, 
should  I  myself  perish  on  the  return  journey.  These  sheets 
also  were  packed  in  a  chest  lined  with  tin  and  soldered,  and 
along  with  them  were  placed  our  zoological  drawings  and 
about  200  sketches  of  the  country,  of  the  Arctic  Sea  and  our 
adventures,  the  flag  too  of  the  sledge  journeys,  and  my 
journals.  Of  the  zoological  collection  itself,  only  a  small 
selection  of  the  specimens  most  easy  of  transport  could  be 
taken  with  us. 

2.  The  time  passed  away  with  unexpected  rapidity;  the 
days  had  scarcely  begun  before  they  seemed  to  have  come  to 
an  end.  Everyone  was  busy  in  getting  his  clothes  ready.  In 
the  quarters  of  the  crew,  sewing  went  on  without  intermission, 


344  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

and  piles  of  thread  disappeared  under  their  fingers,  to  appear 
again  in  the  strangest  patterns  worked  on  the  old  garments. 
Avalanches  of  cast-off  clothes  hung  over  the  hull  of  the  ship. 
The  vessel — no  longer  trim  as  before — came  to  wear  the  look 
befitting  the  catastrophe  that  awaited  her.  A  great  number 
of  bears'  carcases  lay  on  the  ice,1  for  only  the  brain,  the 
tongue,  and  the  prime  portions  of  the  flesh  found  their  way 
to  the  kitchen,  the  remaining  parts  lay  about  half  buried 
under  snow-drifts,  given  up  to  the  dogs  to  tear  to  pieces,  who 
now  for  the  first  time  found  themselves  exempted  from  rations 
served  out  according  to  time  and  circumstances.  A  month 
later,  and  such  a  field  of  carnage  would  have  become  a  very 
home  of  pestilence. 

3.  Short  excursions  with  the  dog-sledge  enabled  us  to  finish 
our  observations  on  the  motion  of  glaciers,  which  the  great 
depth  of  the  snow   had   hitherto  made  a  matter  of   much 
difficulty.     The  last  of  these  expeditions  took  place  on  May 
1 5th.     On  the  spot  on  which  we  had  first  set  our  foot,  we 
took  farewell  of  the  grave  of  our  departed  comrade  and  of 
the  Land  to  which  we  had  drifted  through  the  happy  caprice 
of  an  ice-floe,  and  the  discovery  of  which  rendered  a  return 
without   humiliation   possible.      But   with   this    farewell    the 
business  of  the  expedition  came  to  an  end,  all  our  thoughts 
were   now  occupied  with  getting  back  to   Europe.     Of  the 
issue  we  dared  not  form  the  least  conception  ;  but  whether  it 
were  deliverance  or  destruction,  our  lot  must  at  any  rate  be 
decided  within  three  months,  as  for  this  period  only  we  could 
drag  with  us  the  most  indispensable  provisions. 

4.  On  our  equipment  Lieutenant  Weyprecht  and  I  bestowed 
much  thought  and  care,  and  our  measures  were  carried  out 
with  the  greatest   exactness.     All  these  were  based  on  the 
excellent  apparatus  for  sledging  already  described ;  the  ad- 
ditional precautions  were  confined  to   the  more    convenient 
stowing  away  of  the  provisions,  and  to  the  diminishing,  as 
much  as  possible,  of  the  baggage.     The  rapid  decrease  of  the 

1  On  May  5  a  bear  got  away  from  us  through  a  bad  shot,  but  a  second  was 
killed  just  as  he  had  attacked  Torossy.  May  9,  again,  a  bad  shot  scared  away  a 
bear;  on  the  eleventh  one  was  killed  by  Herr  Orel.  This  bear  had  already 
received  a  ball  in  his  shoulder,  and  a  second  in  his  head  an  inch  and  a  half  under 
the  right  eye. 


I.] 


LAST  DAYS  ON  THE  "  TEGETTHOFF/ 


345 


cold  and  the  consequent  rise  of  the  temperature,  even  above 
the  freezing  point,  enabled  us  to  reduce  our  clothing  to  a 
minimum  without  endangering  our  health ;  and  no  more 
comfortable  sleeping-place  for  Arctic  explorers  can  be  con- 
ceived than  the  interior  of  a  dry  boat,  covered  in  like  a  tent 
and  provided  with  bed-quilts.  There  was  more  danger  that 
we  should  suffer  from  heat  than  from  cold ;  the  apprehension 
of  insufficient  provisions  was  better  founded. 

5.  Three  boats  were  selected  for  the  return  expedition. 
Two  of  these  were  Norwegian  whale-boats,  20  feet  long,  5 
feet  broad,  and  2|  feet  deep.  Lieutenant  Weyprecht,  E)r. 
Kepes,  Lusina,  Orasch,  Latkovich,  Palmich,  Vecerina  and 
Klotz,  formed  the  complement  of  the  one ;  and  Zaninovich^ 
Haller,  Lukinovich,  Scarpa,  Stiglich,  Pospischill,  Midshipman 
Orel  and  I,  the  complement  of  the  other,  The  third  and 
.somewhat  smaller  boat  carried  Lieutenant  Brosch,  Captain 
Carlsen,  Cattarinich,  Lettis,  Sussich,  Marola  and  Fallesich. 
Each  of  these  boats  rested  on  a  sledge,  and  was  laden  with 
the  following  articles  : — 


IO  light  oars. 
2  long  steering  oars. 
I  sail  and  mast. 

1  ice-anchor. 

2  boat-hooks. 

I  harpoon  and  line. 

I  fishing-line. 

i  small  hatchet. 

I  ice-borer. 

I  screw-driver. 

I  caulking-iron. 

I  saw. 

6  reserve  sledge  screws. 

1  bag  of  nails. 

2  Lefaucheux  rifles. 
I  Werndl  rifle. 

i  case  with  100  shot  cartridges. 

1  case  with  50        ditto. 

2  cases  of  50  Lefaucheux  cartridges. 
25  Werndl  cartridges. 

8  sledge  traces. 

6  lamps. 

6  weights  for  measuring  provisions. 

2  pairs  of  reindeer  shoes. 

2  oil  cans. 

I  bag  of  nails. 


20  boxes  of  lucifer  matches. 
i  steel  and  tinder. 
i  compass. 
I  sextant. 
I  bundle  of  wicks. 
i  telescope. 
I  signal  horn, 
i  5o-fathom  line. 
I  box  of  lard. 
I  pair  of  tin-cutters. 
I  grindstone. 
3  bungs. 


Spare  Clothes. 

pair  of  drawers. 

shirt. 

woollen  undershirt. 

pair  of  trousers. 

spirit  measure, 
pair  of  scales.       . 
spirit  can. 
lever, 
funnel. 


346  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

To  each  boat  was  attached  a  large  sledge  thus  laden  : — 

Ibs. 


„             I  box  of  25  Ibs.           .... 

.       25 

,,            4  boxes  of  5  Ibs.          .... 

20 

245 

Peasmeal  —  2  chests  of  100  Ibs.  packed  in  tin 

.      200 

,,           I  chest  of  100  Ibs.  packed  in  paper 

.       100 

300 

Potted  Meat—  I  chest  of  80  Ibs. 

80 

Boiled  Beef—  5  chests  of  10  tins  of  7!  Ibs. 

•    375 

,,                    „            4    „          7|  Ibs.     . 

.      30 

—  405 

Flour  —  3  boxes  of  33  Ibs  

99 

Bread—  2  bags  of  83  Ibs  

166 

Chocolate  —  3  boxes  of  30  Ibs  

90 

Spirits-  —  3  casks,  each  weighing  77  Ibs.            .         . 

231 

Salt  —  I  box  of  12  Ibs.             

12 

Extract  of  Meat  —  2  boxes  of  5  Ibs. 

IO 

Tea—  i  box  of  3  Ibs  

3 

Total        ...  1641 

To  this  must  be  added  100  Ibs.  of  bread  for  the  dogs, 
and  a  shovel  and  a  complete  cooking  apparatus  for  each 
sledge.  Our  load  therefore  amounted  in  provisions  alone  to 
about  50  cwt,  and  including  everything,  to  about  90  cwt. 
Parry,  with  twenty-eight  men,  in  1827  had  for  his  journey 
of  sixty-one  days  two  boats  and  four  sledges,  carrying  a  total 
weight  of  75  cwt. — about  2j  cwt.  therefore  for  each  man. 
Notwithstanding  great  obstacles  from  the  ice,  his  expedition 
was,  perhaps,  more  favoured  than  ours,  for  he  passed  over 
I J  degrees  of  latitude  in  thirty  days. 

6.  Of  our  dogs,  two  only,  Jubinal  and  Torossy,  were  avail- 
able to   drag  the  small  sledge  ;   I    cwt.  of  bread  was  all  we 
could  take  for  them,  and  for  the  rest  they  had  to  depend  on 
the  product  of  the  chase.     Gillis  was  shot  on  account  of  his 
intractability,  and    Semlja  because  of   her  weakness.     Only 
Pekel  was  allowed  to  accompany  us  ;  he  only  of  the  dogs  had 
the  right  of  going  about  at  liberty  ;  yet  his  life  too  was  safe 
as  long  as  our  provisions  lasted. 

7.  Our  stock  of   clothes  consisted  of  two  woollen  shirts, 
one  pair  of  woollen  drawers,  three  pairs  of  stockings,  leather 


I.]  LAST  DAYS  ON  THE  "  TEGETTHOFF."  347 

water-boots,  a  cap,  and  of  a  fur-coat  to  sleep  in.  Clean 
woollen  under-garments  were  much  in  request,  and  many  a 
manoeuvre  was  practised  to  get  possession  of  them.  Each 
of  the  party  carried  besides  a  large  knife,  a  spoon,  and  a  pair 
of  snow-spectacles.  Of  luxuries  none  were  permitted  to  us 
but  a  tobacco-pouch  to  each  man  ;  but  filled  with  such  art 
that  it  was  like  a  stone  in  weight.  We  were  not  allowed  to 
line  our  coats  with  tobacco.  • 

8.  Our  plan  was  simple — to  reach  the  depdt  of  provisions 
on  the  Barentz  Islands,  which  lay  in  an  almost  directly 
southerly  direction.  After  replenishing  our  stores  there,  we 
proposed  to  follow  the  coast  of  Novaya  Zemlya  with  the 
hope  of  reaching  one  of  those  ships  which  the  salmon  fishery 
in  the  rivers  of  that  .country  detains  there  to  the  beginning 
of  harvest.  It  was  also  not  impossible  that  we  might  be 
discovered  before  this,  on  the  more  northern  coast  of  Novaya 
Zemlya,  by  a  Norwegian  seal-hunter.  The  boats  were  to 
keep  together  if  possible  ;  but  in  case  they  should  be  separated, 
the  Wilhelm  Islands  were  fixed  on  as  the  place  of  rendezvous 
up  to  the  middle  of  August.  At  first,  night  was  chosen  for 
the  march,  and  day  was  devoted  to  sleep  ;  the  observance, 
however,  of  this  regulation  was  constantly  prevented  by 
special  circumstances.  The  success  of  the  expedition  de- 
pended on  our  crossing  the  ice-covered  sea  by  the  end  of 
August.  The,  greatest  difficulties  were  to  be  apprehended 
from  the  melting  of  the  snow,  for  although  the  thermometer 
at  the  beginning  of  May  fell  14°  and  even  17°  below  zero, 
and  sharp  north-east  winds  somewhat  retarded  the  thaw,  the 
mean  temperature  during  the  day  approximated  to  zero,  and 
on  May  16  it  actually  rose  above  it.  Two  of  our  men,  Stiglich 
and  Vecerina,  were  unfit  for  duty,  and  had  often  to  be  dragged 
in  the  sledge.  The  rest  of  the  men  were  healthy,  and  the 
swelling  of  the  feet,  from  which  the  sledge-party  had  suffered, 
had  disappeared. 


CHAPTER  II. 

ON    THE  FROZEN  SEA. 

I.  THE  momentous  day  came  at  last — the  2Oth  of  May,  the 
very  day  in  1855  on  which  Kane  abandoned  his  ship  ; l  and 
we  hailed  with  joy  the  advent  of  the  hour  which  was  to 
terminate  our  life  of  inaction.  Yet  we  could  not  see  without 
emotion  the  flags  nailed  to  the  masts  of  the  Tegetthoff,  and 
the  final  preparations  to  leave  the  ship,  which  had  been  our 
home  for  two  weary  years,  and  in  which  we  had  confronted 
the  perils  of  the  frozen  sea,  its  ice-pressures,  its  storms,  and 
its  cold.  These  recollections  crowded  upon  us  as  the  moment 
came  to  abandon  her.  Now  too  we  had  to  part  with  our 
Zoological,  Botanical,  and  Geological  collections,  the  result  of 
so  much  labour  ;  the  ample  collection  of  instruments,  the 
books  which  had  helped  us  over  many  a  weary  hour,  and  the 
sixty-seven  bear-skins  which  we  had  so  carefully  prepared — 
all  these  had  also  to  be  abandoned.  The  photographs  of 
friends  and  acquaintances  we  hung  on  the  rocky  walls  ashore, 
preferring  to  leave  them  there  rather  than  in  the  ship,  which 
must  some  time  or  other  be  driven  ashore  and  go  to  pieces. 
A  document  stating  the  grounds  of  our  decision  was  laid  on 
the  table  of  the  mess-room. 

2.  We  slept  during  this  day,  and  in  the  evening  sat  down  to 
the  last  meal  we  were  to  enjoy  on  board  the  ship.  About 
nine  o'clock,  P.M.,  we  assembled  round  the  boats,  ready  for  the 
start.  Dark  masses  of  clouds  obscured  the  sun,  and  our 
route  southwards  led  us  into  the  gloomy  monotonous  region 

1  With  three  boats,  two  of  which  were  whale-boats,  each  26  feet  long  and  7  feet 
broad.  His  crew  wore  Eskimo  clothing,  and,  strange  to  say,  some  of  them  had 
gutta-percha  masks.  Parry's  towards  the  North  Pole  in  1827,  Kane's  in  1855, 
and  our  own,  have  much  in  common  :  but  the  greatest  difficulties  were  on  our  side. 


v 


CHAP.  II.]  ON  THE  FROZEN  SEA.  349 

of  ice-hummocks  covered  with  snow — our  world  for  the  next 
three  months.     The  first  day's  work  for  twenty-three  men, 
harnessed  to  boat  or  sledge,  was  the  advance  of  one  mile  ; 
and   even   this   rate   of  progress,   small   as   it  was,  was  not 
constant.     Many  days  it  did  not  amount  to  half  a  mile  ;  the 
sledge-sail  was  of  little  avail,  for  the  deep  snow  retarded  our 
progress  ;  the  sledgas  sank  deep  into  it,  those  on  which  the 
boats  were  placed  actually  sticking  fast.     We  had  to  pass 
three  times  heavily  laden,  and  twice  empty,  over  every  bit  of 
the  road,  and  half  our  number  were  scarcely  able  to  move  a 
sledge  or  a  boat.     Such  labours  and  exertions  in  deep  snow 
were  truly  distracting.     Almost  at  every  step  we  sank  knee- 
deep.     Sometimes  some  unhappy  fellows  went  in  deeper  still ; 
of  Scarpa,  it  was  asserted  that  scarcely  anything  but  his  head 
was  visible  while  he  dragged.     Constantly  we  had  either  to 
unload  the  sledge,  or,  harnessing  ourselves  all  together  for  a 
moment,  drag  it  out  of  the  deep  snow-drift.     For  one-half  of 
the  march  we  might  get  on  without  special  impediment,  the 
other  half  was  spent  in  vain  efforts  to  push  the  load  on,  amid 
"  Aussingen,"  1  to  time  the  strong  pull  and  the  pull  all  together. 
The  perspiration  often  streamed  down  our  faces,  for  the  sky 
was    overcast,   and   the  air   exceedingly    sultry.      After   the 
exertion  of  some  days,  raw  wounds  appeared  on  the  shoulders 
of  several.     After  a  bit  of  our  track  had  been  passed  over 
three  times  in  the  way  described,  it  was  like  a  path  in  the 
snow  hollowed  out  by  the  shovel,  so  that  we  had  spent  our 
strength  in   levelling  it,  but  hardly  in  satisfactory  progress. 
To  add  to  our  trials,  we  "suffered   intensely  from  thirst,  and 
those  among  us  who  were  unaccustomed  to  the  fatigues  of 
sledge-travelling,  sank  down  in  the  snow  at  every  halt  and 
greedily  ate  of  it.      If  such  were   to  be  the  course  of  our 
journey,  would  escape  be  possible?     Not  a  man  among  us 
imagined  that  we  could  be  saved,  except  by  some  extraor- 
dinary   and    happy  turn    of  fortune,    small   signs   of  which 
were  at  present  to  be  seen.     To  escape  from  this  depressing 
fear,  we  deliberately  avoided  every  allusion  to  the  future. 

3.  The  dogs,   under  the  superintendence  of   Carlsen,  took 
their  part  in  the  transport  of  the  baggage,  but  showed  them- 

1   "  Aussingen  "  is  a  sailor's  word  for  a  particular  rhythm  to  which  they  pull  in 
time. 


350  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

selves  very  lazy  and  intractable  under  his  management,  and 
seemed  to  take  a  pleasure  in  plunging  their  loaded  sledge 
deep  into  the  snow,  out  of  which  it  was  beyond  the  old  man's 
power  to  free  them  without  help.  Nor  was  their  own  strength 
equal  to  going  over  the  track  twice  at  least,  even  with  only 
one  cwt.  each  time.  If,  therefore,  their  services  were  to  be 
turned  to  account,  they  must  be  led  by  iome  one  whom  they 
obeyed,  who  could  help  them  by  shoving  or  dragging,  who 
could  set  up  the  sledge  when  it  overturned,  and  was  strong 
enough  to  keep  constantly  lifting  the  heavy  bags,  and  who 
could  pass  over  the  same  piece  of  road  four  or  five  times, 
if  necessary.  This  duty  was  taken  in  turn  by  Haller  and 
myself,  and  we  succeeded  in  transporting  in  this  way  daily  all 
the  bread  and  the  spirits,  weighing  together  from  8  to  10  cwt., 
and,  in  some  cases,  at  a  later  period,  even  the  entire  load  of  a 
great  sledge  divided  into  parts.  I  mention  this  in  order  to 
show  the  great  services  which  our  dogs,  though  their  number 
was  small,  rendered  during  the  march. 

4.  In  the  first  week  after  the  Tegctthoff  was  abandoned, 
whenever  Weyprecht  encamped  at  the  end  of  the  day's  march, 
Haller,  Zaninovich  and  I  returned  in  the  dog-sledge  to  the 
ship  in  order  to  replenish  the  stores  we  had  consumed.  The 
distance,  which  we  had  taken  a  week  to  pass  with  all  our 
baggage,  was  done  by  the  help  of  the  dogs  in  an  hour  or  two. 
In  these  different  visits  we  did  our  utmost  to  fulfil  the  com- 
missions of  our  companions.  We  rummaged  the  hold,  though 
in  many  of  the  cases  we  opened  nothing  was  to  be  seen  but 
a  dressed  bear-skin.  In  one  of  these  trips  we  filled  a  small 
cask  with  a  concentrated  decoction  of  all  the  tea  which  was 
left  behind,  and  the  rum  we  found  was  used  to  give  it  the 
proper  strength.  When  we  returned  to  the  boat-parties 
before  the  morning  start,  this  still  lukewarm  decoction  of  tea 
and  rum  met  with  great  approbation,  but  the  greatest  was  re- 
served for  the  remains  of  the  condensed  milk  we  brought  with 
us,  not  merely  because  it  was  milk,  but  because  to  us  it  was 
the  only  milk  in  the  world.  Round  the  remains  of  the  bears 
we  had  killed  we  always  found  flocks  of  sea-gulls  screaming 
and  quarrelling.  Sometimes  too  we  saw  bears  prowling  round 
the  ship  at  a  distance,  waiting  till  their  time  for  plunder  came. 
They  seemed  to  wait  for  the  moment  when  they  should  be 


II.J  ON  THE  FROZEN  SEA.  351 

able  to  take  permanent  possession  of  a  fortress  which  had  been 
so  long  hostile  to  their  race. 

5.  But  we  had  the  benefit  of  their  company  through  the 
earlier  part  of  our  journey.     May  23,  a  bear  was   shot  by 
Weyprecht,  and  forthwith  the  gulls,  who  always  turned  up 
whenever  there  was  anything  eatable  to  be  got,  consumed  the 
remains  with  astonishing  rapidity,  even  to  the  bones.     On  the 
26th,  when  I  was  about  two  miles  from  the  advanced  parties, 
fetching  something  which  had   been  left  behind,  I  suddenly 
sighted  a  bear  at  about  100  paces  distant,  lying  in  the  snow 
and  apparently  asleep.     The  dogs  too  got  sight  of  him,  and  I 
had  much  trouble  in  keeping  them  in,  till  I  overturned  the 
sledge  to  act  as  a  breast-work.    As  the  bear  rose  and  stood  on 
his  hind  legs  I  fired,  but  though  severely  wounded,  he  managed 
to  crawl  away.     The  dogs,  rushing  off 'with  the  sledge  behind 
them,  assailed  the  wounded  animal  with  a  fury  which  would 
have  been  fatal  to  them,  if  the  sledge  had  been  checked  by 
any  obstacle.     Torossy  specially  showed  a  complete  ignorance 
of  how  matters  stood,   and  was  saved  by  Jubinal  from  the 
paws  of  his  assailant.     Whenever  the  bear  came  up  to  the 
sledge,  Jubinal  swung  round  with  it,  till  I  came  up  so  close  as 
to  make  sure  of  killing  it  with  my  last  cartridge.     On  the 
3 1st,  Klotz  shot  a  bear  which  came  within  ten  paces  of  the 
boats  ;  but  notwithstanding  this  addition  of  fresh  meat,  the 
stores  we  brought  in  the  dog-sledge  from  the  ship  maintained 
their  charm. 

6.  A  few  days  after  the  abandonment  of  the  ship,  dark 
masses   of   clouds,  indicating  open  water,  were  seen  in  the 
south-west,  which  doubtless  proceeded  from  the  fissures  we 
had  observed  three  weeks  before  from  Cape  Briinn.     There 
was   good   ground,   therefore,    to   hope   that  we   should   get 
beyond  the  land-ice  in  a  few  days,  and  reach  the  network  of 
ever-changing  "  leads."      If  we  succeeded  in  this,  we  might 
then  launch  the  boats  in  one  of  these  water-ways,  and  follow- 
ing the  windings  of  its  course  between  the  fields  of  ice,  escape 
to  the  south  with  greater  rapidity.     Our  most  sanguine  expec- 
tations were  exceeded  when,  on  the  28th,  we  reached  unex- 
pectedly a  small  flat  island,  the  very  existence  of  which  was 
unknown   to   us — Lament    Island.      Ascending   the    highest 
point  of  it,  we  saw  an  "  ice-hole  "  stretching  to  the  south-east, 


352 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


in  which  was  floating  an  enormous  table-shaped  iceberg. 
This  "  ice-hole  "  was  not  more  than  a  mile  from  the  southern 
extremity  of  the  island,  which  was  itself  still  surrounded  by 
forced-up  blocks  of  ice.  A  driving  snow-storm  detained  us 
on  the  29th  on  the  island,  and  we  contented  ourselves  with 
gathering  pieces  of  drift-wood  lying  on  the  shore.  On  the 
3<Dth  we  delayed  no  longer  in  our  attempt  to  advance  to  the 
edge  of  the  floes  and  launch  our  boats.  But  our  calculations 
were  doomed  to  disappointment  ;  after  a  toilsome  search  of 
several  days  to  find  a  suitable  spot  from  which  to  launch  our 
boats,  we  were  convinced  that  this  was  for  the  present  impos- 
sible, because  the  edges  of  the  "  ice-hole  "  were  surrounded 
with  broad  barriers  of  broken  ice,  rendering  the  passage  of 


IN    THE    HARBOUR   OF   AULIS. 


the  boats  and  sledges  impossible.  Weyprecht  and  Klotz  had 
meanwhile  started  to  reconnoitre,  and  their  report  on  their 
return  showed  that  sledging,  for  the  present  at  least,  was  at 
an  end.  The  ice-hole  before  us  extended  far  eastward,  and 
the  attempt  to  outflank  it  would  have  led  us  through  walls  of 
ice  piled  up  to  the  height  of  fifty  feet.  We  went  back,  there- 
fore, to  the  more  level  surface  of  ice  we  had  left,  and  pitched 
our  camp,  which  we  called  the  "  Harbour  of  Aulis  ;  "  for,  like 
the  Greeks  of  old,  we  had  here  to  wait  for  more  favourable 
winds.  Winds  only  could  open  the  ice  before  us  and  widen 
the  "  leads  "  into  a  navigable  condition.  We  had  never  kept 
at  any  great  distance  from  our  boats  while  engaged  in  trans- 
porting their  heavy  loads,  but  henceforward  we  were  careful 


II.]  ON  THE  FROZEN  SEA.  353 

to  keep  close'  to  them,  as  we  had  every  reason  to  look  for  the 
speedy  breaking  up  and  separation  of  the  ice.  We  were  now 
in  79°  46'  N.  L.,  and  therefore  only  five  miles  from  the  ship. 
Cape  Tegetthoff  was  still  distinctly  visible  on  our  northern 
horizon. 

7.  The  space  in  the  boats  being  insufficient  for  the  crew  and 
all  the  baggage  we  had  to  take,  Weyprecht  determined  to  send 
back  Orel  and  nine  men  to  bring  away  the  jolly-boat,  which 
had  been  left  behind,  and  I  went  on  in  the  dog-sledge  to  help 
in  the  work  of  removing  more  stores  from  the  ship.     It  took 
me  just  three  hours  to  do  the  distance,  which  it  had  cost  the 
advanced  parties  eight  days  to  accomplish.     The  activity  of 
the  dogs  received  a  fresh  stimulus  from  their  coming  on  the 
track  of  a  bear  running  in  the  direction  of  the  ship,  and  when 
we  came  within  1,000  yards  of  it,  there  we  saw  our  enemy, 
who,  however,  thought  it  more  prudent  not  to  await  our  attack. 
On  the   7th  of  June   the   equipment   of  the  jolly-boat  was 
completed,  and  we  returned  to  our  companions  with  a  load  of 
3  cwt.  of  boiled  beef,  shot,  and  other  necessaries.     The  old 
track,  now  well  trodden  down,  proved  a  great  advantage  to  us. 
If   we  had  deviated  a  single  step,  we  should  at  once  have 
stuck  fast,  for  the  character  of  the  snow  had    altered,  and 
where  it  lay  in  masses  it  had  become  mere  sludge.     The  tem- 
perature, which  at  the  end  of  May  had  varied  between   25° 
and  19°  F.,  rose,  on  June  I,  to  freezing-point,  and  remained 
steady  at  that  point  for  some  time.     Even  during  the  weeks 
of  midsummer  the  temperature  rose  only  a  few  degrees  above 
freezing-point.     On  the   3rd  of  June  it   rained  for  the  first 
time,  and  gradually  the  weather  assumed  the  character  of 
fogs   and    driving   mists   so    common  to   the   Arctic   Ocean/ 
Clear  days  were  of  rare  occurrence,  and,  occasionally  only,  the 
sun  shone  for  a  few  hours.     On  our  return  to  the  boats  we 
found  their  crews  were  sitting  up  and  looking  out,  like  young 
birds  in  a  nest,  to  see  what  we  had  brought  from  the  ship. 
Tobacco  was  regarded  as  a  right  royal  gift,  and  Dr.  Kepes,  to 
whom  I  gave  a  shirt-sleeve  well  stuffed  out  with  the  precious 
weed,  regarded  himself  as  a  Crcesus. 

8.  Meantime  our  longings  to  launch  grew  apace  ;  anxiously 
we  looked  for  the  widening  of  a  fissure  to  enable  us  to  advance 
southward.     We  attempted  again  and  again  to  approach  the 


354  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

"  ice-hole,"  but  always  found  insuperable  difficulties  to  bar  the 
way.  The  effort  to  get  one  of  our  boats  into  a  dock  we  had 
hewn  in  the  ice  nearly  ended  in  its  loss,  and  nothing  was  left 
to  us  but  to  repeat  the  flank  march  along  the  fatal  "  ice-hole  " 
to  the  "  harbour  of  Aulis,"  there  to  watch  for  the  breaking- 
up  of  the  ice.  Throughout  the  day  we  sat  penned  up  in  the 
boats,  worn-out  with  a  feeling  of  indescribable  weariness, 
each  morning  longing  for  the  end  of  the  day,  and  at  every 
meal  thinking  when  the  next  would  be  ready.  It  seemed  as 
if  the  time  for  launching  the  boats  would  never  come.  When 
the  hoarse  melancholy  scream  of  the  burgomaster-gull  sounded 
through  the  stillness  of  the  night,  it  seemed  like  a  demon 
voice  from  another  world,  proclaiming  that  all  our  efforts 
would  avail  nothing  to  deliver  us  from  the  icy  power  which 
held  us  in  its  grasp.  A  visit  from  a  bear  was  a  welcome 
change  in  the  monotony  of  our  life. 

9.  We  were  now  in  the  middle  of  June.  Winds  from  the 
south  still  prevailed,  and  we  were  close  to  the  ship  at  the 
expiration  of  some  weeks  ;  the  third  part  of  our  provisions 
was  consumed,  and  of -the  250  German  miles  between  the 
ship  and  coast  of  Lapland  we  had  accomplished  but  one  mile 
and  a  quarter.  If  this  should  continue  to  be  the  rate  of  our 
progress,  we  had  the  prospect  of  reaching  home  in  twenty 
years  !  Yet  gloomy  as  things  appeared,  there  were  moments 
when  we  were  tempted  to  think  that  the  end  of  our  trials  had 
come  at  last.  Thus,  on  the  i/th  of  June,  an  "  ice-hole  "  opened 
close  to  us;  instantly  we  prepared  to  take  advantage  of  it. 
The  day  was  perfectly  clear,  and  though  the  temperature  in 
the  shade  stood  at  freezing-point  (F.),  it  was  to  us  an  African 
heat.  W7e  threw  down  the  walls  of  ice,  levelled  a  track  for  the 
sledges,  and  that  night  we  stood,  with  all  our  baggage,  at  the 
edge  of  the  open  water,  and,  on  the  morning  of  the  i8th  of 
June,  we  at  last  succeeded  in  launching  our  boats  and  putting 
all  our  baggage  on  board.  The  sledges,  fastened  to  the  boats, 
were  towed  in  their  wake.  The  dogs  were  put  in  the  different 
boats,  Jubinal  alone  taking  kindly  to  his  new  abode,  seeing 
doubtless  that  he  would  have  to  sleep  no  longer  on  snow. 
After  drinking  some  tea  with  the  last  remains  of  our  rum,  we 
pushed  off,  steering  towards  the  south,  and  it  was  a  sure  sign 
of  the  elevation  of  our  spirits,  that  three-and-twenty  tobacco- 


II.] 


ON  THE  FROZEN  SEA. 


355 


pipes  were  immediately  put  into  active  operation.  Our  pro- 
gress, however,  was  but  small,  scarcely  more  than  one  mile  an 
hour,  which  was  fully  accounted  for  by  the  deep  lading  of  the 
boats  and  the  towing  of  the  sledges.  We  might  have  sailed 
about  three  miles,  steering  in  a  southerly  direction,  when  a 
heavy  floe  stopped  us,  and,  progress  for  the  time  being  im- 
possible, we  drew  the  boats  up  on  the  ice  and  went  to  rest. 
Soon  after,  snow  began  to  fall,  and  a  west  wind  set  in,  which 
gradually  veered  to  the  south,  and  the  floes  were  again  forced 
together,  and  we  found  all  the  "leads"  closed  up  when  we 
attempted  to  move  on  in  the  morning.  Again  we  had  to 


WE    LAUNCH   AT   LAST. 


wait,  but  with  this  difference,  that  we  were  now  at  the  mercy' 
of  the  wind,  which  might  drive  us  with  the  floe,  on  which  we 
happened  to  be,  wherever  it  pleased. 

^  10.  On  the  i  Qth  of  June  we  had  to  lie  still  in  our  boats, 
but  next  day  we  were  able  to  push  them  to  the  edge  of  a 
fissure,  into  which  we  let  them  down,  unlading  them  and 
lading  them  afresh  on  the  opposite  side ;  our  progress  during 
the  day  thus  amounted  to  a  mere  change  of  encampment 
from  one  floe  to  another  floe.  The  absence  of  navigable 
"  leads "  prevented  our  advancing  further.  Our  position 
remained  unaltered  for  the  riext  two  days,  the  only  event 


356    '  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

that  occurred  being  the  shooting  of  a  seal  (Phoca  Grcenlan- 
dica),  which  sufficed  to  make  the  soup  we  had  for  supper 
somewhat  more  palatable.  He  had  fallen  to  the  gun  of 
Weyprecht,  who  proved  to  be  the  luckiest  of  us  all  in  seal- 
hunting,  in  which  only  the  persevering  succeed.  Every  seal 
that  was  shot  was  of  course  a  saving  of  the  stock  of  our 
provisions,  and  hence  the  killing  of  these  animals  was  a 
matter  of  extreme  importance  to  us,  and  the  preservation  of 
our  lives  depended  in  a  very  great  measure  on  our  success. 

II.  Nothing  can  give  a  better  idea  of  our  life  at  this  period 
than  a  few  quotations  from  my  journal  : — 

"  J^lne  23. — Things  have  improved  a  little  towards  the 
south;  in  the  forenoon  of  this  day  we  passed  over  two  water- 
holes  and  two  floes,  thus  advancing  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile. 
The  intervention  of  a  third  floe  hindered  us  from  penetrating 
into  another  '  ice-hole.'  After  midnight  the  ice  again  opened, 
and  we  sailed  several  hundred  paces  further. 

"  June  24. — Early  in  the  morning  Orel  shot  a  seal  of 
unusual  size.  We  dragged  on  for  half  a  mile  over  a  large 
field  of  ice  to  its  southern  edge,  but  found,  on  our  arrival 
there,  that  an  accumulation  of  smaller  floes  barred  our  advance. 

"  June  25. — We  could  not  sail  a  bit  further;  winds  from 
the  north-east  prevailed;  our  latitude  was  79°  16'.  After 
leaving  the  ice  under  the  land,  the  depth  of  the  snow  con- 
siderably diminished,  so  that  the  sledges  on  which  the  boats 
were  placed  could  be  dragged  on  much  more  easily  than 
before.  There  were,  however,  no  pools  of  thaw-water  on  the 
ice,  though  we  had  observed  such  much  earlier  in  the  preceding 
year. 

"June  26. — Several  hours  occupied  in  passing  over  ice- 
fields and  small  'ice-holes.'  During  the  halt  at  noon  a  bear 
came  within  twenty  paces  of  us,  but  seeing  so  many  men  in 
motion,  ran  off.  The  ice  appeared  to  be  last  year's  ice,  and 
was  much  crushed.  Orel  at  noon  took  the  latitude  by  sex- 
tant and  artificial  horizon,  and  found  it  79°  41' — bitter 
disappointment. 

"June  27. — With  a  fresh  north-east  wind  we -sailed  to-day 
over  a  larger  'ice-hole,'  our  latitude  at  noon  being  79°  39'. 
In  the  afternoon  we  dragged  our  sledges  for  a  quarter  of  a 
mile  over  an  ice-field,  and  our  baggage  had  so  diminished 


II.]  ON  THE  FROZEN  SEA.  4  357 

that  I  had  to  drag  with  the  dog-sledge  not  more  than  7  cwt.. 
In  the  lee  of  large  ice-fields,  which  act  like  islands,  we  find 
sometimes  somewhat  more  open  water-ways. 

"  June  28. — Two  ice-fields  and  two  '  ice-holes  '  were  crossed 
to-day.  Progress,  though  small  with  the  boats,  would  have 
been  simply  impossible  with  a  ship,  which  could  not,  like 
boats,  be  dragged  over  floes.  Falls  of  snow  and  gleams  of 
sunshine  alternate  with  each  other.  While  the  rest  slept  a 
watch  was  always  posted  outside  the  boat  to  observe  the 
behaviour  of  the  ice,  and  to  give  us  timely  notice  of  the 
approach  of  a  bear. 

fflsr 


MARCHING   THROUGH    ICE-HUMMOCKS 


"  June  29. — Two  or  three  small  '  ice-holes '  and  some  ice- 
fields were  crossed  to-day.  The  last  ice-field  we  dragged 
over  was  of  considerable  extent.  To-day,  for  the  first  time, 
we  made  the  attempt,  with  great  success,  to  force  the  boats 
through  narrow  'leads'  by  means  of  poles.  Another  seal 
was  got.  Every  one  of  us  had  now  learnt,  by  force  of  habit, 
to  eat  half  a  pound  of  seal  blubber  with  our  tea  at  noon,  and 
to  eat  it  with  pleasure.  It  was  some  comfort  to  the  more 
delicate  and  sensitive  to  be  assured  that  it  tasted  like  butter, 
and  many  experiments  had  been  made  on  the  edibility  of  the 
fins  during  the  last  few  days.  Kane  came  to  consider  seal-fin 
as  a  kind  of  salad.  We  cooked  it  in  our  soup,  and  the  dogs 
at  last  went  beyond  us  in  the  high  estimate  they  placed  on 


358 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


this  article  of  diet.  It  is  worth  remarking,  albeit  it  seems  to 
be  a  contradiction,  that  though  we  had  all  an  abhorrence  of 
fatty  substances  during  the  sledge-journeys  in  the  coldest 
period  of  the  year,  we  now  took  to  them  with  great  relish 
when  the  weather  was  warm.  In  fact  we  never  felt  better 
than  after  a  noon-day  meal  at  which  we  had  consumed  a 
considerable  quantity  of  blubber.  Our  digestion  was  particu- 
larly good,  and  those  who  suffered  from  stomach  complaints, 
produced  by  the  continuous  use  of  pease-sausage,  ceased  to 
be  so  affected.  The  real  ground  of  this  abnormal  preference 


HALT   AT    NOON. 


of  fatty  substances  was  doubtless  the  fact  that  we  had  now 
abundance  of  drinking  water,  and  did  not  suffer  therefore 
from,  thirst. 

"  June  30. — A  small  '  ice-hole,'  and  then  a  large  ice-field 
were  crossed,  and  as  we  were  in  the  act  of  passing  over  a 
'  lead '  filled  with  broken  ice,  it  suddenly  closed,  and  we  had  to 
draw  our  boats  up  again,  and  to  wait  till  the  ice  should  part 
asunder.  The  snow  has  become  quite  soft,  and  we  find  water 
at  the  bottom  of 'a  hole,  and  employ  it  for  the  first  time  for 
cooking.  Cape  Tegetthoff  and  Salm  Island  are  still  visible 


II.] 


ON  THE  FROZEN  SEA. 


359 


The  dogs  to-day  drew  12  cwt,  and  are  quite  exhausted.  I 
had  my  hair  cut  by  Klotz,  and,  with  many  apologies  for  my 
poverty,  offered  him  some  water  in  compensation — an  offer  he 
declined.  In  the  Arctic  Seas,  even  to  the  doctor,  a  glass  of 
water  is  a  handsome  fee." 

So  it  runs  on  for  weeks  together  in  my  journal ;  and  if  it 
be  tiresome  for  readers  to  follow  such  repetitions,  how  much 
more  wearisome  must  it  have  been  to  live  through  and  expe- 
rience them  !  Yet  if  it  were  possible  for  oursituation  to  become 
worse,  it  did  so  during  the  first  half  of  the  following  month. 

12.  On  the  1st  of  July  the  whole  of  our  day's  labour  con- 
sisted in  passing  over  a  fissure.  The  observations  taken  at 


CROSSING   A   FISSURE. 


noon  gave  79°  38'  as  our  latitude,  so  that  during  the  last  four 
days  we  had  gained  one  single  minute  only.  Next  day  we 
lay  amid  fragments  of  floes  closely  packed  together,  and 
there  were  neither  "  ice-holes  "  nor  fields  of  ice  over  which  we 
could  pass.  On  the  3rd  of  July  we  crossed  some  fissures  with 
great  difficulty  and  traversed  two  small  ice-fields,  but  a  wind 
from  the  S.E.  set  in,  and  our  observations  showed  79°  38'  N. 
latitude  ;  while  we  discovered  from  our  longitude  that  we 
were  only  four  miles  to  the  east  of  the  ship.  The  small 
amount  of  drift  discernible  in  the  ice,  with  such  strong  winds, 
was  a  sad  sign  of  its  closely  packed  condition. 

13.  With  imperturbable  patience  we  continued  to  drag  our 
heavy  loads  over  the  ice,  and  on  the  4th  imagined  that  we 
25 


360  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

had  penetrated  a  mile  in  a  southerly  direction  ;  but  the  wind 
from  the  S.E.  blew  so  persistently  that  when  we  took  our 
observations  on  the  following  day  we  found  our  latitude  79° 
4oJ',  and  that  we  had  thus  been  actually  driven  back  towards 
the  north-west,  and  that  the  toils  of  the  last  three  weeks  had 
been  fruitless.  On  the  5th  and  6th  the  ice  lay  before  us  in 
piled-up  masses  rendering  progress  impossible,  and  we  were 
compelled  to  rest,  consuming  our  provisions  without  getting 
one  step  further.  Our  seal-hunting  also  on  those  days  was 
seldom  successful.  For  hours  the  hunters  lurked  round  the 
edges  of  ice-holes,  sometimes  without  seeing  a  single  seal 
come  to  the  surface ;  and  when  at  last  the  animal  did  make 
its  appearance,  it  very  often  sunk  after  it  was  hit,  before  a 
boat  could  be  launched.  Those  we  saw  on  the  edges  of  ice- 
holes  showed  a  dexterity  in  diving  out  of  the  way  of  mischief 
which  failed,  as  things  were,  to  excite  our  admiration.  The 
bears,  even  more  than  the  seals,  showed  a  prudence  and 
caution  which  their  previous  behaviour  had  not  led  us  to 
expect.  On  the  first  of  those  days  a  bear  came  pretty  near 
us,  but  the  dogs,  alas  !  rushed  at  him  and  drove  him  away. 
Henceforward  when  the  dogs  were  not  dragging  they  were 
secured  with  ropes,  but  our  prudence  came  too  late. 

14.  On   the   7th   there  was   no   change.     The  day  passed 
away  in  moving  from  one  floe  with  rotten  edges  to  another 
somewhat   more   firm.      We   only  shoved  our   boats    a  few 
hundred  yards  through  the  lakes  of  thaw  water  which  had 
formed  themselves  on  the  ice.     Our  latitude  was  79°  43'. 

15.  On  the  8th  we  got  away  in  a  narrow  "lead"  a  few 
hundred  paces  southward,  but  after  getting  so  far  we  were 
stopped  by  thickly-packed  ice,  and    again  we  had  to  draw 
our  boats  out  of  the  water  and  recommence  our  life  of  pain- 
ful expectancy — watching  for  the  ice  to  open.      No  one  of 
the   party    suffered   so   much   from   this  depressing  state  of 
things  as  Carlsen.     For  more  than  twenty  years  the  old  and 
tried  "  ice-master  "  had  lived  amid  floes  and  ice-blinks,  man- 
fully and  successfully  fighting  against  the  hardships  of  the 
Arctic  Seas,  and  now  that  frailties  had  increased  on  him,  he 
saw  himself  compelled  to  such  toils  and  privations  as  would 
have  taxed  his  strength  even  in  his  prime.     The  old  polar 
navigator  bore  his  burthens  without  murmur  or  complaint, 


II.]  ON  THE  FROZEN  SEA.  361 

though  it  was  painful  to  others  to  see  the  signs  of  exhaustion 
in  his  appearance.  He  no  longer  spoke  of  the  polar  bears 
and  walruses,  which  he  had  entranced  by  a  glance  of  his  eye 
or  bewitched  with  one  of  his  words  of  magic.  Even  the 
puritanical  zeal  with  which  he  once  rebuked  and  lectured  the 
Slavonians  for  playing  cards  on  "  God's  holy  day  "  had  grown 
somewhat  cold,  and  his  fears  lest  the  conversations  of  the 
lively  Southerners  should  end  in  blows  became  even  more 
intense. 

1 6.  It  was  a  strange  life  this  abode  for  weeks  of  summer  in 


boats  covered  over  with  a  low  tent  roof.  Oars  by  way  of 
furniture,  and  three  pairs  of  stockings  for  each  man's  mattress 
and  pillow.  My  journal  describes  these  days :  "  Four  boats 
are  lying  on  the  ice,  crammed  with  sleeping  men :  and  so 
great  is  the  heat  in  them,  that  no  one  needs  his  fur  coat,  and 
snow  placed  in  any  vessel  becomes  water  in  a  few  hours.  If 
Torossy  has  not  ushered  in  the  day  by  barking,  the  cooks  do 
it  when  they  bring  the  bowls  of  soup  to  the  boats  with  the 
cry  '  Quanta ! '  Then  ensues  a  short  scene  of  confusion  : 


362  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

spoons  and  tin-pots  have  to  be  searched  for  and  found,  till  at 
length  quiet  is  again  restored,  after  a  little  ransacking,  and 
each  man  has  his  pot  full  of  hot  soup  in  his  hand,  consisting 
of  meal,  pemmican,  pease-sausage,  bread-dust,  boiled  beef,  seal, 
and  bears'  flesh  ;  when  the  soup  is  flavoured  with  seal-blubber 
it  is  called  '  Gulyas.'  The  soup  is  consumed  amid  perfect 
silence — not  a  word  is  spoken  ;  what  indeed  was  there  to  be 
said,  which  was  not  already  known,  or  which  had  not  been  said 
a  hundred  times  before  ?  Each  one  knows  the  other's  history 
from  his  cradle  downwards.  A  stillness  like  death  reigns  over 
all  the  surrounding  forms  of  ice,  and  the  frozen  ocean  stretches 
out  beneath  a  vast  shroud.  A  sunless  leaden  sky  spreads  over 
all,  not  a  breath  of  air  stirs,  it  is  neither  warm  nor  cold,  slowly 
melts  the  snow,  and  this  pale  realm  of  ice  forms  a  world  of 
danger  and  difficulty,  against  which  are  matched  the  strength 
and  sagacity  of  three-and-twenty  men ! 

"  Again  all  have  taken  their  places  in  the  boats  to  bale  out 
the  thaw  water,  the  great  enemy  of  their  health — and  of  their 
solitary  pair  of  boots.  He  whose  turn  it  is  to  hunt  the  seal 
squats  at  the  edge  of  a  floe  before  a  fissure,  which  admits 
a  few  square  feet  of  water,  in  which  no  seal  will  show  himself, 
because  he  has  scarcely  room  to  turn  in  it. 

"  To  the  others,  their  abode  in  the  boats  is  a  time  of  mani- 
fest weariness  and  ennui.  Happy  the  man  who  has  any 
tobacco,  happy  he  who,  after  smoking  his  pipe,  does  not 
fall  into  a  faint ;  happy  too  the  man  who  finds  a  fragment  of 
a  newspaper  in  some  corner  or  other,  even  if  there  should  be 
nothing  contained  in  it  but  the  money-market  intelligence, 
•or  perhaps  directions  to  be  followed  in  the  preparation  of 
pease-sausage.  Enviable  is  he  who  discovers  a  hole  in  his  fur 
coat  which  he  can  mend  ;  but  happiest  of  all  are  those  who 
can  sleep  day  and  night.  Of  these  latter  some  have  stowed 
themselves  away  under  the  rowing  seats,  and  above  them 
reposes  a  second  layer  of  sleepers,  but  nothing  is  visible  of 
either  party  but  the  soles  of  their  feet.  No  paradise  of  bliss ! 
Noon  comes  :  a  little  tea  is  made  over  the  train-oil  fire,  each 
gets  one  cup  of  it  and  a  handful  of  hard  bread-crumbs — a 
kind  of  dog's  food  which  the  impartial  '  committee  of  pro- 
visions '  measures  out  with  Argus-eyes.  The  fourth  part  of 
the  skin  of  a  seal  is  thrown  into  each  of  the  four  boats,  and 


IT.]  ON  THE  FROZEN  SEA.  363 

the  blubber  on  it  is  eagerly  devoured.  Some,  for  the  sake  of 
the  fins,  the  ribs,  or  the  head,  become  guests  of  the  dogs. 
Flocks  of  gulls  settle  impudently  near  us,  screaming  and 
fighting  for  every  morsel  they  can  reach.  Some  of  us  try  to 
catch  them  with  nets,  but  no  sooner  are  the  nets  up  than  the 
gulls  disappear. 

"  The  formality  of  dinner  is  over,  and  we  have  come  to 
such  a  pass  that  even  the  tea  excites  the  nerves  of  the  com- 
munity, and  some  Troubadour  will  then  raise  his  voice  with  a 
bravura  such  as  might  have  been  heard  on  San  Marco.  The 
end  of  the  Franklin  expedition,  and  the  history  of  the  two 
skeletons  which  were  found  in  the  boat,  is  told  again  for  the 
twentieth  time — a  story  which  never  fails  to  produce  a  harrow- 
ing effect,  and  to  rouse  the  firm  and  resolute  to  yet  greater 
efforts  and  self-command. 

"  The  most  animated  conversation,  however,  or  rather  a 
constant  chattering,  is  going  on  meantime  in  the  soot-begrimed 
tent  of  the  cook.  A  difference  of  opinion  arises  about  the 
precise  time  when  the  kettle  was  to  be  scraped  out,  or  about 
the  curtailing  of  the  allowance  in  the  last  distribution  of  salt, 
or  as  to  the  delinquent  who  made  a  wood-fire  on  a  cask  of 
spirit,  or  who,  instead  of  untying,  cut  the  string  of  the  sledge 
packing  ;  many  flourishes  of  speech  are  bandied  to  and  fro, 
which  at  any  rate  speak  well  for  the  oratorical  gifts  of  the 
disputants. 

"  There  is  still,  however,  one  solace  left  us,  the  solace  of 
smoking.  Some  indeed  have  already  exhausted  their  whole 
stock  of  tobacco.  He  who  has  half  a  pouch  of  it  at  his 
disposal  is  the  object  of  general  respect,  and  the  man  who  can 
invite  his  neighbour  to  a  pipe  of  tobacco  and  a  pot  of  water 
is  considered  to  do  an  act  of  profuse  liberality.  Tobacco 
-becomes  a  medium  of  exchange  among  us,  and  provisions  are 
bought  and  paid  for  with  it,  its  value  rising  every  day.  There 
is  no  difference  between  day  and  night,  and  Sundays  are  only 
distinguished  by  dressing  the  boats  with  flags." 

17.  In  this  enforced  idleness  passed  away  the  days  between 
the  Qth  and  I5th  inst.,  save  that  on  the  I4th  we  changed  our 
place  by  three  hundred  yards,  in  order  to  select  a  more  con- 
venient spot  for  seal-hunting  and  to  keep  up  the  appearance 
of  travelling — but  in  truth  only  the  appearance,  for  in  reality 


364  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

our  situation  had  become  truly  dreadful.  There  were  no 
events  of  sudden  occurrence  either  to  excite  or  alarm  us,  but 
time  flowed  on,  and  our  constantly  diminishing  stock  of  pro- 
visions, like  the  steady  movement  of  the  hands  of  a  clock, 
spoke  with  a  plainness  of  speech,  that  could  not  be  resisted, 
of  the  doom  impending  over  us.  Hitherto  we  had  patiently 
endured  the  severe  labours  of  dragging  our  heavily-laden 
boats  and  sledges  from  floe  to  floe,  of  launching  the  boats  in 
the  small  fissures,  and  again  drawing  them^  on  to  the  floes, 
when  the  ice  became  closely  packed,  often  too  carrying  all  the 
provisions  and  baggage  as  we  slowly  crept  along.  The  least 
progress  was  sufficient  to  fill  us  with  joy  and  thankfulness. 
Meanwhile  the  ice  on  all  sides  lay  closely  packed,  and  many 
times  we  had  to  wait  for  a  week  in  our  boats  on  a  floe,  till  the 
"  leads "  were  pleased  to  open,  while  every  empty  tin  case 
proclaimed,  with  fearful  distinctness,  the  diminishing  of  our 
provisions  and  the  gloominess  of  our  prospects ;  and  now  a 
steady  wind  from  the  south  destroyed  the  little  progress  we 
had  made.  After  the  lapse  of  two  months  of  indescribable 
efforts,  the  distance  between  us  and  the  ship  was  not  more  than 
nine  English  miles !  The  heights  of  Wilczek  Island  were 
still  distinctly  visible,  and  its  lines  of  rocks  shone  with 
mocking  brilliance  in  the  ever-growing  day-light.  All  things 
seemed  to  say  that  after  a  long  struggle  with  the  supremacy 
of  the  ice  there  remained  for  us  but  a  despairing  return  to 
the  ship  and  a  third  winter  there,  stript  of  every  hope,  and 
the  Frozen  Ocean  for  our  grave  ! 

1 8.  Such  reflections  and  prospects  were  not  calculated  to 
raise  our  spirits  or  promote  calm  and  deliberate  thought, 
and  it  was  happy  for  us  that  the  earth  was  round,  and 
that  we  were  thus  prevented  from  seeing  how  much  ice  lay 
between  us  and  the  open  sea.  No  measures  were  left  un- 
tried which  promised  to  facilitate  our  progress  or  prolong 
our  lives.  We  ceased  to  cook  with  oil,  and  used  spirit 
instead,  in  order  to  lighten  the  boats.  The  rations  of  bread 
were  diminished  ;  even  our  faithful  companion  little  Pekel 
fell  a  victim  to  necessity.  Seals  played  a  greater  part  still 
in  our  cuisine,  and  everything  seemed  to  depend  on  the 
successful  use  of  the  four  hundred  ball-cartridges  which 
still  remained  in  store.  On  the  i$th  of  July  a  walrus 


II.]  ON  THE  FROZEN  SEA.  365 

showed  himself  close  to  the  boats,  but  when  we  made  a 
rush  upon  him  to  finish  him  he  disappeared  under  the 
waters,  and  heavy  rain  drove  us  back  again  into  the  boats. 
Up  to  this  time  all  signs  of  a  happy  termination  of  our 
venture  seemed  to  have  disappeared ;  but  the  hour  of  our 
liberation  and  escape  was  nearer  than  we  thought. 

19.  On  the    evening  of  the    I5th  of  July,  after    finishing 
our  supper,  a  line  of   small  "  leads  "    running  to  the  south- 
west opened  itself,  and  we  forced  our  way  for  about  a  mile 
against  wind  and  current  coming   from  the  same  direction. 
Next  day,  July  1 6,  the  wind  blew  from  the  north-west,  and 
after  our  boats  had  been  nearly  crushed  by  the  ice  closing  in 
some  smaller  ""ice-holes,"  we  ran  into  a  broader  and  longer 
"  lead."     At  noon  of  this  day  our  latitude  was  79°  39',  and 
we  had  gone  so  far  that  the  highest  points  of  Cape  Tegetthoff 
and    Wilczek  Island  were  barely  discernible — blue   shadows 
surrounded   by    an    edge    of   yellow    vapour,    and  over   the 
whole  a  heavy  water  sky. 

20.  Up  to  this  date  we  had  been  compelled  to  cross  every 
fissure,  a  procedure  as  exhausting  for  us  as  it  was  detrimental 
to  the  boats.     The  least  impediment,  such  as  the  stoppage 
of  a  "  lead  "  by  some  pieces  of  ice,  had  sufficed  to  cause  us 
hours  of  laborious  efforts.     The  ice  lay  thick  and  close,  and 
its  floes  were  firmly  frozen  together.     But    now  it  was  not 
only  somewhat  opened,  but  seldom  cemented  by  frost,  and 
the  efforts  of  fifteen  or  twenty  men  generally  sufficed  to  shove 
apart  any  two  floes  with  long  poles,  or  remove  any  barrier 
which  closed    a  "  lead."     If   the    "  leads  "  closed    in  so  that 
there  was  danger  lest  the  boats  should  be  crushed,  the  crew 
jumped  out  and  hauled  them  up  on  the  ice. 

The  accompanying  sketch  exhibits  one  of  the  scenes  that 
occurred  almost  daily — the  pushing  the  floes  asunder  with 
long  poles,  in  order  that  the  boat  might  pass  between  them, 
while  the  rotatory  motion  of  the  floe  closes  the  fissure  in  the 
foreground,  so  that  another  boat  has  to  be  drawn  on  the  ice 
as  quickly  as  possible.  The  baggage  of  the  boat  is  repre- 
sented partly  as  packed  on  a  sledge,  or  partly  lying  on  the 
Snow,  and  the  men  and  dogs  stand  ready  to  drag  it  over  the 
floe  to  the  next  place  of  launching.  Two  other  boats,  which 
have  found  the  "  lead  "  open,  are  on  before,  and  one  of  them 


CHAP.  II.]  ON  THE  FROZEN  SEA.  367 

is  lying  at  an  ice-field  which  has  to  be  crossed,  waiting  for  the 
others  to  come  up. 

21.  It  sometimes  happened  that  we  could  not  push  the  floes 
asunder,  and  we  were  then  compelled  to  cross  them  ;  and  in 
those  cases  where  the  floes  were  a  mile  or  more  in  diameter, 
our  progress  took  the  form  of  sledging.     The  provision  was 
sent  on  for  some  distance  to  the  nearest  water,  and  the  boats, 
which  remained  behind  under  the  care  of  the  less  able-bodied 
of  our  party,  were  lifted  on  to  the  sledge  when  it  returned 
by  the  rest  of  the  crew,  and  firmly  secured.     The  smallest  of 
our  boats  was  shoved  through  the  snow  while  the  dogs  with 
their  sledge  transported  the  bags  of  bread  and  the  spirit. 

22.  An  advance  of  four  miles  a  day  now  sufficed  to  satisfy 
us,  and  we  had  acquired  such  precision  in  our  arrangements 
before  starting  that  three  hours  sufficed  to  accomplish  them. 
If  the  sledges  came  on  obstacles  from  the  ice,  the  pioneers 
hurried  on  with  picks  and  shovels  to  remove  them.     Lakes  on 
the  ice  were  made  little  of;  we  waded  through  them  with 
much  equanimity,  and  any  one  who  fell  into  a  "  lead  "  while 
the  day's  labour  was  going  on  seemed  to  take  the  accident 
very  coolly.     On  the  i/th  of  July  we  had  passed,  in  the  way 
I  have  described,  three  ice-fields  and  three  small  "  ice-holes;*' 
but  on  the  following  day  we  made  very  little  progress,  because 
a  wind,  setting  in  from  the  west,  packed  the  ice  closely.     We 
were  therefore  overjoyed  to  find  our  latitude  to-day  79°  22',  a 
result  which  could  only  be  ascribed  to  the  late  north  winds ; 
but  we  could  not  quiet  our  fears,  lest  a  wind  from  the  south 
should  deprive  us  of  our  dearly-bought  advance. 

23.  We  now  penetrated  into  a  region  full  of  icebergs,  many 
of  which  were  covered  with  earth  and  moraine  dirt,  which" 
made  them  look  at  a  distance,  amid  the  dazzling  uniformity 
of  the  ice,  like  rocky  cliffs.     In  the  evening  a  she-bear  was 
seen  close  to  us,  which  came  full  tilt  at  our  dogs ;  at  thirty 
paces  off  she  was  hit,  but  not  mortally,  and  fell ;  but  getting 
up  again,  ran  off  to  an  ice-hole,  and  remained  long  enough  on 
its  surface  to  be  secured  by  the  harpooners.     She  afforded  us 
as  much  food  as  four  small  seals,  and  some  of  our  party,  with 
the  voracity  of  beasts  of  prey,  scraping  the  flesh  off  the  bones 
for  their  private  use,  carried  it  about  with  them  wrapped   in 
their  pocket-handkerchiefs,  and  ate  about  a  pound  of  it  raw 


368  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

every  day  at  noon,  as  long  as  it  lasted,  after  merely  washing 
the  carrion  in  sea-water. 

24.  On  the  1 9th  of  July  we  again  passed  over  several  small 
ice-fields,  and  on  the  2Oth  and  2ist  one  several  miles  in 
diameter.  We  were  favoured  with  a  north-west  wind,  and  on 
the  2Oth  of  July  our  latitude  was  79°  n',  our  longitude  61° 
3',  and  our  progress  was  so  brilliant  on  the  22nd  (79°  i'  L.), 
that  we  were  compelled  to  draw  the  boats  twice  only  out 
of  the  water,  and  warping  through  narrow  "  leads,"  came  again 
to  larger  "  ice-holes,"  over  which  we  were  able  to  sail.  Our 
spirits  were  greatly  raised,  and  we  went  on  full  of  hope  that 
we  should  soon  come  into  longer  water-ways,  which  would 
exempt  us  from  the  toils  of  crossing  floes  with  the  sledges. 
On  the  23rd  sudden  squalls  from  the  E.N.E.,  accompanied 
with  heavy  showers  of  rain,  detained  us  in  our  covered  boats, 
and  our  whole  business  on  this  day  was  collecting  the  rain- 
water in  an  empty  spirit-cask  a^nd  drinking  it  as  grog.  On  the 
24th  we  again  made  good  progress.  The  rain  fell  in  torrents, 
and  we  were  wet  through  and  through,  and  at  night  we  lay 
down  to  rest  reeking.  The  rain  continued,  but  good  progress 
was  made  almost  without  interruption  during  the  next  three 
days.  We  bore  all  the  discomforts  with  joy,  because  the 
rain  powerfully  and  rapidly  dissolved  the  ice.1  Our  clothes 
were  constantly  wet,  but  we  eagerly  snatched  every  gleam 
of  sunshine  to  dry  our  stockings  or  our  saturated  boots. 

25.  The  cooks,  when  they  called  us  in  the  morning,  now 
constantly  drew  such  pictures  of  the  day's  prospects,  that  we 
might  have  been  tempted  to  believe  that  during  the  night  all 
the  ice  had  disappeared  ;  but  this  pleasing  illusion  was  rudely 
dispelled  whenever  we  stepped  out  of  the  boats  into  the  open 
air.     These  good  men,  having  no  compass  to  consult,  always 
flattered  themselves  with  the  notion  that  where  water  was  to 
be  seen,  there  also  lay  the  south.     But,  alas  !  there  lay  the  ice- 
hummocks,  and  there,  too,  lay  the  boats  and  sledges  to  be 
dragged  as  before.     Klotz  went  a  little  further  ;  it  was  his 
opinion  that  we  ought  always  to  take  to  the  water  without 
fear,  even  if  it  stretched  to  the  north,  in  order,  as  he  said, 
to  get  home  round  the  North  Pole. 

26.  On  the  27th  we  had  reached  78°  48'  N.  L.,  but  a  wind 
1  It  was  Parry's  experience  also  that  nothing  melts  the  ice  like  rain. 


ii.]  ON  THE  FROZEN  SEA.  369 

from  the  south-west  set  in,  and  after  two  days  of  constant 
toil,  alternately  launching  and  drawing  up  the  boats,  we 
found,  on  the  29th,  that  we  had  been  driven  back  to  78°  50' 
N.  L.  But  in  many  cases  the  movement  of  ice  is  unaccount- 
able, and  on  the  3<Dth  this  was  verified  ;  for,  notwithstanding 
the  prevalence  of  the  south-west  wind,  we  had  drifted  to 
78°  32'  N.  L.,  61°  3'  E.  L.  The  weather  at  this  time  was  thicker 
and  duller  than  usual,  and  the  horizon  from  our  boats  extended 
but  a  few  hundred  paces,  so  that  we  had  considerable  diffi- 
culty in  choosing  the  most  navigable  "  leads."  The  view  did 
not  extend  above  two  miles,  even  when  we  climbed  to  the 
top  of  one  of  the  hummocks,  and  mists  generally  lay  on  its 
outskirts.  In  clear  weather  we  had  always  steered  in  the 
direction  of  a  water-sky  which  promised  open  sea,  even  though 
we  had  to  make  detours  to  the  south-west  or  south-east.  But 
now  such  a  foggy  obscurity  lay  over  every  "  ice-hole,"  however 
small,  that  the  outline  of  its  edges  was  hardly  discernible  at 
a  few  paces  off,  and,  under  these  circumstances,  we  could  only 
pull  the  boats  round,  till  we  came  to  the  first  opening  in  the 
enclosing  ice. 

27.  Winds  from  the  south  continued  during  the  following 
week,  and  heavy  rains  again  fell,  and  we  had  much  laborious 
dragging  through  the  fog  on  the  3 1st  of  July  and  the  1st  of 
August.  Our  stock  of  bread,  which  had  been  reduced  to 
powder  by  the  constant  lading  and  unlading,  was  meanwhile 
so  thoroughly  soaked  that  on  the  2nd  of  August  we  stopped 
for  half  a  day  on  a  floe  (78°  28'  N.  L.,  61°  49'  E.  L.)  to  dry  it  in 
the  sun,  which,  after  a  long  absence,  gladdened  us  by  showing 
himself.  We  took  the  opportunity  also  to  dry  our  clothes  and 
our  stockings.  On  such  a  day  as  this  the  scene  around  us- 
entirely  lost  its  gloomy  sepulchral  character  ;  the  heavens 
were  brilliantly  blue,  the  ice  lay  around  us  in  dazzling  light, 
and  the  deep  ultramarine  of  the  sea-water  peeped  forth 
from  the  "leads."  Henceforward  we  had  less  occasion  to 
cross  large  floes.  Our  route  gradually  changed  its  character  ; 
"  leads  "  and  "  ice-holes  "  occurred  far  more  frequently,  and 
the  channels  between  them,  winding  through  drifting  islands 
of  ice,  were  sometimes  three  or  four  miles  in  extent.  Along 
these  we  glided  under  sail  and  oars,  and  when  we  came  to  a 
temporary  halt,  Weyprecht,  with  his  compass,  mounted  one 


370  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

of  the  ice-hummocks  to  examine  the  water-ways  and  deterr 
mine  which  we  should  follow.  Our  rate  of  progress  was 
much  increased,  an  acceleration  due  to  the  change  in  the  ice, 
effected  slowly  but  surely  by  sunshine  and  rain.  The  enormous 
masses  of  snow  were  wasting  away  ;  the  thaw-water,  gather- 
ing in  countless  streams,  spread  as  lakes  on  the  hollows  of  the 
floes,  and  oozed  through  fissures  in  the  ice  into  the  sea.  The 
edges  of  the  floes,  undermined  by  the  action  of  the  waves, 
fell  in,  or  were  worn  away  by  the  pressure,  and  a  single  warm 
day  or  shower  of  rain  sufficed  to  dissolve  what  remained  of 
them.  Hence,  if  the  difficulty  of  drawing  boats  on  to  the  ice 
was  lessened,  the  danger  of  breaking  through  it  in  the  process 
was  greater,  and  we  ran  the  risk  of  seeing  all  the  cases  con- 
taining our  provisions  sink  in  the  sea  before  our  eyes.  As  the 
ice-fields  diminished  in  size  and  thickness,  the  number  and 
breadth  of  the  "  leads  "  increased.  The  alternation  of  heavy 
south-east  winds  and  calms  helped  on  the  destruction  of  the 
ice,  and  our  progress  was  great  in  proportion.  From  the  3rd 
to  the  /th  of  August  each  day  we  accomplished  greater 
distances.  The  ice  gradually  changed  from  pack-ice  to  drift- 
ice,  impenetrable  only  where  it  lay  in  thicker  masses.  When 
fogs  came  on,  we  generally  decided,  after  wandering  about  for 
a  little,  to  wait  on  or  near  a  floe  for  finer  weather.  We  no 
longer  restricted  our  labours  to  certain  times  of  the  day. 
In  the  highest  spirits,  we  toiled  incessantly  at  rowing  or 
dragging  the  boats,  or  shoving  the  floes  asunder  with  our 
long  poles. 

28.  On  the  /th  our  progress  might  be  estimated  at  twelve 
miles.  It  was  the  first  day  we  had  got  on  without  dragging 
the  sledges  and  crossing  floes,  and  when  we  halted  at  noon 
amid  some  loose  ice,  we  saw,  to  the  south,  a  fluctuation  in 
the  sea  level,  and  the  ice  alternately  rising  and  falling.  "  The 
swell  of  the  ocean  ! "  exclaimed  all  with  joy :  "  we  are  close 
to  the  open  sea  " — the  open  sea  .being  to  us  at  that  moment 
deliverance.  Our  amazement  at  finding  it  at  such  a  latitude, 
78°  N.  L.,  was  so  great  that,  notwithstanding  that  indisputable 
sign,  we  could  scarcely  believe  our  eyes,  and  we  were  filled 
with  indescribable  excitement.  For  a  moment  only  that 
excitement  was  diverted  to  other  and  very  different  objects — 
two  bears  suddenly  appeared  on  the  scene,  swimming  about 


II.] 


ON  THE  FROZEN  SEA. 


371 


100  paces  from  us.  Two  boats  were  at  once  manned,  and  the 
chase  began.  But  the  bears  swam  faster  than  the  boats  could 
be  pulled  by  the  four  men  in  each  boat;  sometimes  they 
raised  themselves  high  out  of  the  water  as  they  turned  to 
look  at  their  pursuers.  Suddenly  one  of  them  disappeared, 
while  the  other  made  for  a  floe  and  climbed  on  to  it.  As  he 
stood  and  impudently  stared  at  us,  a  shot  was  fired  at  him, 
and  he  immediately  decamped,  swimming  with  great  rapidity 
to  another  distant  floe.  But  as  no  trace  of  blood  was  to  be 
seen  on  the  ice,  and  our  companions  drinking  their  mid-day 
tea  were  scarcely  to  be  distinguished,  we  considered  it  unsafe 


BEARS   IN    THE   WATER. 


to  pursue  him  further.  In  the  evening  we  stopped  again 
before  a  dense  group  of  small  floes,  which  like  the  rest  of  the 
.ice  had  become  rotten ;  the  one  whereon  we  were  preparing 
to  encamp  for  the  night  broke  into  several  pieces  just  as  we 
were  raising  our  boat  on  to  it.  We  were,  however,  fortunate 
enough  to  save  our  provisions. 

29.  Though  we  had  been  accustomed  so  long  to  oscillate 
between  extremes,  we  now  felt  that  the  hour  had  come,  when 
we  might  count  with  certainty  on  being  liberated  from  the 
fetters  of  the  ice,  and  all  our  hopes  gained  new  life.  Yet 
once  more  they  seemed  doomed  to  be  disappointed.  On  the 


372  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

/th,  before  we  turned  into  sleep,  the  prevailing  north  wind  had 
gathered  so  much  ice  around  us  that  we  were  fairly  shut  in. 
Next  day  (August  8),  after  the  efforts  of  many  hours  to  force 
through  the  multitude  of  small  floes  by  which  we  were  jammed 
in,  we  discovered  that  we  should  be  unable  to  move,  unless 
the  wind  changed  to  the  south-west.  Our  exertions  on  the  Qth 
were  equally  unsuccessful.  It  was  not  dense  masses  of  ice,  under 
whose  walls  we  had  so  often  felt  ourselves  imprisoned,  that 
now  held  us  captive,  but  miserable  flat  floes.  Their  diameter 
was  from  fifty  to  sixty  paces,  and  though  they  hardly  appeared 
above  water,  they  were  not  the  less  impenetrable  hindrances. 
The  movement  in  the  sea,  that  had  so  elevated  us,  was  scarcely 
perceptible,  and  our  faith  in  the  nearness  of  the  ocean  was 
consequently  much  shaken. 

30.  Again  rain  fell  in  abundance,  and  we  remained  in 
the  boats  waiting  for  the  breaking-up  of  the  ice.  It  was 
scarcely  possible  to  go  any  distance  from  them,  for  the  ice  of 
the  surrounding  floes  was  so  thin,  that  we  could  not  venture 
to  walk  on  them  lest  we  should  break  through.  Fissures 
abounded,  but  no  seals  were  to  be  seen  in  them.  This  forced 
abode  in  our  boats  was  almost  unendurable.  We  could  not 
always  sleep,  and  only  a  frugal  few  had  any  tobacco  left  to 
smoke.  Some  of  our  party  had  for"  a  long  time  smoked  dry 
tea-leaves  in  the  form  of  cigarettes,  or  had  filled  their  pipes 
with  match  paper.  All  the  tinder  had  been  long  used  up  in 
this  way,  and  a  dreadful  trial  it  had  been  to  the  olfactory 
nerves  of  .those  who  would  not  so  indulge.  Haller  went 
further  still,  and  smoked  paper  in  the  close  covered  boat ! 
besides  many  leaves  of  his  note-books,  he  still  had  a  quantity 
of  packing-paper,,  but,  in  the  interest  of  the  community,  I 
was  compelled  to  interfere  against  its  use  in  this  fashion.  He 
found  some  compensation  in  another  occupation,  which  had 
the  merit  at  least  of  being  inoffensive  to  others — mixing 
together  his  rations  of  tea,  salt,  and  bread-dust,  he  converted 
the  mixture  into  a  soup.  These  days  seemed  as  though  they 
would  never  end  ;  there  was  a  continual  taking  off  and  pulling 
on  of  boots  ;  some  sat  in  the  boats  gaping  about  vacantly  in 
all  directions ;  some  standing  on  the  ice  gaped  as  vacantly ; 
all  mental  activity  was  concentrated  in  two  wishes,  that  the  ice 
would  break  up,  and  that  the  time  for  the  next  meal  would 


II.]  ON  THE  FROZEN  SEA.  373 

come  round.  No  one  had  any  private  reserve  of  provision. 
The  days  were  gone  when  a  stocking  filled  with  bread 
might  be  seen  hanging  from  the  belt  of  one,  or  the  ribs  of  a 
bear  in  the  hand  of  another.  And  yet  amidst  all  the  hunger, 
which  we  felt  the  more  acutely  from  our  abundant  leisure, 
some  among  us  had  actually  become  as  plump  as  quails,  and 
f  we  had  been  found  dead  on  the  floes,  it  would  have  been 
thought,  that  we  had  died  in  consequence  of  over-eating,  so 
stout  had  most  of  us  become.  But  dreadful  was  the  solemn 
lapse  of  time.  August  was  well  advanced  ;  the  knowledge 
that  we  had  provisions  for  only  one  month  more,  and  the 
shortness  of  the  season  for  action  that  still  remained,  failed 
not  to  impress  upon  us  all  that  the  crisis  of  our  fate  was  at 
hand.  For  three  weeks-  past  the  formation  of  young  ice  had' 
begun,  both  on  the  ice  and  on  the  sweet-water  lakes  on  the 
floes.  Even  during  these  summer  months,  the  temperature  in 
the  night  had  frequently  fallen  two  or  three  degrees  below 
freezing-point,  and  the  cold  now  began  to  join  the  fragments 
of  old  floes  into  formidable  obstacles.  The  caprice  of  a  wind 
might  again  carry  us  off  towards  the  north,  as  it  had  done 
two  years  ago,  but  carry  us  too,  to  certain  inevitable  destruc- 
tion. On  the  Qth  of  August  we  found  our  latitude  78°  9' — a 
higher  degree  than  we  had  expected.  But  what  would  a  lower 
degree  have  availed  us,  had  not  the  open  sea  been  near  us — 
the  open  sea,  on  which  hung  all  our  hopes,  ever  since  the 
word  had  been  uttered  ?  The  joy  of  that  day's  discovery  was 
fed  and  sustained  by  the  low  murmur  of  a  distant  surf,  which 
either  imagination  or  our  senses,  rendered  acute  by  the 
presence  of  danger,  continued  to  hear  in  the  south. 

31.  Thus  passed  the  days  from  the  loth  to  the  I3th  qf 
August,  the  calking  of  our  boats  forming  our  only  distraction. 
Eagerly  and  earnestly  we  gazed  on  the  water-sky  in  thS  south 
and  on  every  change  in  the  ice.1  On  the  loth  our  latitude  was 
78°  6'  and  our  longitude  60°  45',  E.  ;  on  the  1 3th  our  latitude 
was  77°  58',  and  our  longitude  61°  10'  E.  On  the  I2th  the  ice 
had  become  somewhat  looser.  We  advanced  a  mile  to  the  south, 
but  were  then  again  beset.  It  rained  during  the  whole  day,  and 
in  the  night,  the  temperature  fell  several  degrees  below  freez- 

1  The  wind  maintained  its  westerly  character,  and  we  drifted,  as  we  had  so  often 
before,  to  the  right  of  its  direction. 


374  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

ing-point.  Ice  an  inch  thick  was  formed  on  the  1 3th  over  the 
surface  of  the  fresh-water  lakes,  and  when  we  went,  either  to 
drink  from  them  or  to  perform  our  toilet,  we  had  to  break 
through  a  coating  of  ice.  All  these  were  so  many  signs  that 
Summer  had  bid  us  adieu  and  that  the  short  Autumn  of  the 
north  had  begun.  This  day,  too,  we  had  the  first  impression 
of  the  returning  cold. 

32.  At  last  during  the  night  of  the  I4th,  the  ice  somewhat 
opened  and  we  could  go  on  or  way.  Just  before  we  started, 
in  the  early  morning,  a  seal  was  shot  which  the  dogs  had 


CALKING  THE    BOATS. 


discovered  and  attacked  :  it  was  the  eighteenth  and  last  we 
shot  since  we  abandoned  the  ship.  With  much  labour  in 
shoving  we  forced  a  passage  through  a  long  succession  of 
*'  leads  "  and  halted  for  a  short  rest  at  midnight  in  front  of  a 
larger  "  ice-hole,"  to  refresh  our  strength  with  some  pieces  of 
blubber,  seasoned  with  alcohol  and  thaw-water.  Drift  ice 
lay  all  round  us,  and  we  had  the  presentiment,  that  the  hour 
at  last  had  come  which  was  to  set  us  free  from  the  ice.  All 
things  rise  in  our  estimation,  when  we  are  about  to  bid  them 
farewell,  and  it  was  with  some  pain  that  we  felt  all  at  once,  that 
in  a  few  minutes  we  should  bid  adieu  to  the  realm  of  ice, 
which  lay  behind  us  in  all  its  magical  grandeur.  We  now 


II-l 


ON  THE  FROZEN  SEA. 


375 


moved  on  under  sail :  the  "  ice-holes  "  increased  in  size,  the 
ice  diminished,  and  the  swell  of  the  ocean  was  perceptibly 
greater.  Our  latitude  at  noon  next  day  was  77°  49'.  A  large 
"  ice-hole  "  opened  before  us,  and  with  a  sea  running  high,  the 
boats,  making  a  good  deal  of  water,  we  sailed  into  it — it  was 
the  last  ice-hole.  The  last  line  of  ice  lay  ahead  of  us,  and 
beyond  it  the  boundless  open  sea  ! 

33.  About  six  o'clock  in  the  evening  we  had  reached  the 
extreme  edge  of  the  ice-barrier,  and  once   more,  but  for  the 


FAREWELL  TO  THE  FROZEN  OCEAN. 


last  time,  drew  our  boats  on  a  floe.  Again  our  ears  heard  the 
noise  of  the  waves — the  voice  of  life  to  us.  Again  we  saw 
the  white  foam  of  the  surge,  and  felt,  as  if  we  had  awoke 
from  a  death-like  slumber  of  years  to  a  new  existence.  But 
if  our  joy  at  deliverance  was  great,  not  less  great  was  our 
astonishment  to  have  reached  the  ice-barrier  in  the  high  lati- 
tude of  77°  40',  and  with  it  the  hope  of  final  escape.  We 
went  to  rest  for  some  hours,  but  were  roused  by  the  watch 
about  two  o'clock  in  the  morning.  The  east  wind  had  gathered 
some  heavy  masses  of  ice  around  us,  which  rose  and  fell  with 
26 


376  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  II. 

the  swell  of  the  ocean,  and  we  were  already  several  hundred 
yards  from  the  water's  edge.  Any  delay  in  escaping  as  quickly 
as  possible  would  require  the  labours  of  many  days  to  set  us 
free  again.  After  much  shoving  with  the  poles,  and  lading  and 
unlading,  we  again  got  beyond  the  line  of  ice.  The  frozen 
ocean  lay  behind  us,  and  on  our  last  floe  we  made  preparations 
for  our  voyage  on  the  open  sea. 


CHAPTER  III. 

ON   THE   OPEN   SEA. 

i.  THERE  lay  the  open  Ocean  before  us ;  never  were  its 
sparkling  waves  beheld  with  more  sincere  joy,  than  by  the 
small  band  of  men,  who,  escaping  from  the  prison  house  of 
the  ice  after  fearful  struggles,  now  raised  their  arms  on  high 
to  greet  its  glad  waters.  The  i$th  of  August  was  the  day  of 
our  liberation — the  festival  of  the  Assumption  of  the  Virgin 
— and  our  boats  were  dressed  with  flags  in  its  commemoration. 
But  it  was  no  time  for  the  rest  and  recreation  of  a  Holy 
Day :  graver  duties  pressed  upon  us.  The  boats  had  to  be 
ballasted,  and  were  with  difficulty  made  to  take  on  board  the 
baggage,  the  water-casks,  and  the  crews.  Our  four  sledges,  to 
which  we  owed  so  much  of  our  success  so  far,  were  of  course 
left  behind.  The  dogs  too  were  put  on  board,  not,  however, 
without  much  hesitation,  when  the  contingencies  of  the 
voyage  were  considered. 

2.  With  three  hurrahs,  we  pushed  off  from  the  ice,  and  our 
voyage  commenced.  Its  happy  issue  depended  on  the  weather 
and  on  incessant  rowing.  If  a  storm  should  arise,  the  boats, 
laden  as  they  were,  must  sink.  We  were  soon  convinced  that 
the  dogs,  which  suffered  greatly  from  sea-sickness,  would 
'dangerously  incommode  us  in  the  boats  by  destroying  their 
trim.  There  was,  in  fact,  no  room  for  them  in  our  over- 
crowded boats,  nor  water,  nor  provisions.  We  could  not 
bring  ourselves  to  abandon  them,  and  our  only  form  of  grati- 
tude for  their  services  was,  alas  !  the  painful  one  of  putting 
them  to  death.  A  floe,  by  which  we  passed,  became  the 
grave  of  these  our  true  friends,  our  companions  in  all  situa- 
tions, and  our  helpers  in  all  dangers  !  It  was  indeed  a  painful 


3;8  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

moment,  when  Jubinal  was  taken  out  of  the  boat  to  meet  his 
death.  It  was  the  loss  of  a  true  cQmrade,  who  had  never 
departed  from  my  side,  and  who  had  patiently  borne  all  the 
labours  and  toils  imposed  on  him.  Poor  Torossy  too,  born 
in  the  Arctic  regions,  amid  the  ice-pressures,  was  not  a  little 
lamented. 

3.  With  boundless  satisfaction,  we  saw  the  white  edge  of 
the  ice  gradually  become  a  line,  and  at  last  disappear.     Every 
one  felt,  that  finding  the  ice-barrier  in  so  high  a  latitude,  was 
the  crowning  blessing  to  which  we  must  ascribe  our  liberation. 
At  the  distance  of  a  mile  from  the  edge  of  the  ice,  the  temper- 
ature of  the  water  had  risen  to  30°  R,  and  that  of  the  air  to 
39°  F.     The  sunbeams  were  reflected  with  such  intensity  from 
the  smooth  surface  of  the  sea,  that  we  felt  the  long  unknown 
sensation  of  heat,  and  were  obliged  to  cast  off  some  of  our 
garments. 

4.  We  shaped  our  course  south-by-west,  towards  the  Barentz 
Islands,  intending  to  take  in  supplies  of  provisions  from  the 
dep6t  formed  by  Count  Wilczek,  and  then  to  coast  along 
Novaya  Zemlya  in  search  of  a  ship  engaged  in  the  fisheries, 
which  we  hoped  to  find  either  at  Admiralty  Peninsula,  or 
Matoschkin  Straits,  or  in  Dunen  Bay.     Norwegian  vessels, 
engaged  in  the  capture  of  the  walrus,  might  be  looked  for  as 
far  south  as  Matoschkin  Straits,  and  the  Russian  salmon-fishers 
still  further  to  the  south.     The  nearest  land  was  fifty  miles  off, 
and  everything  depended  on  our  reaching  its  friendly  shores 
before  the  weather  changed  for  the  worse.     In  the  event  of 
stormy  weather  there  would  be  no  other  alternative  than  to 
throw  our  provisions  overboard  in  order  to  lighten  the  boats. 

5.  Putting  forth  all  our  strength,  we  rowed  steadily  for  some 
days.     Weyprecht  took  the  lead  in  his  boat,  and  the  others 
followed  him  as  quickly  as  possible.     The  crew  of  each  boat 
was  divided  into  two  watches,  who  were  relieved  every  four 
hours.     It  frequently  happened  that  one  boat  fell  behind  the 
others,  and  was  lost  sight  of  in  a  fog  or  mist.     Trumpets  and 
horns  were  then  sounded,  till  the  laggard  boat,  by  renewed 
efforts   of   her  crew,    came    up  with  the    others.      On    the 
1 6th,  a  breeze  from  the  north  sprang  up,  and  we  used  our  sails 
with  good  effect  for  some  hours.     At  last  Novaya  Zemlya  was 
sighted — some  silvery  points  above  the  level  of  the  sea,  which 

\ 


ill.]  ON  THE  OPEN  SEA.  379 

our  people  took  at  first  for  the  reappearance  of  the  ice  in  the 
south  ;  they  proved  to  be  the  snowy  summits  near  Cape 
Nassau.  At  this  headland  the  mountains  running  along  the 
coast  suddenly  cease,  and  the  land  trending  to  the  north-east, 
assumes  the  monotonous  character  of  glaciation  almost  with- 
out mountains,  as  far  as  the  lonely  shores  where  three 
centuries  ago  Barentz  slept  his  last  sleep. 

6.  Our  progress  had  no  longer  the  paralysing  insignificance 
of  former  days.     This  day  at  noon  our  latitude  was  76°  46', 
and  on  the.  i/th,  the. picturesque  range  of  mountains  south  of 
Cape  Nassau,  rose  through  the  morning  mists  close  before  us 
steeped  in  violet  and  crimson  hues.     A  fog  arising,  we  rowed 
along  by  compass  in  the  midst  of  it,  the  boats  seemed  to  float 
in  the  air  amid  the  fog.     During  its  continuance  a  current 
caused  us  to  deviate  so  much  to  the  south-west,  that  when  at 
noon  the  land  was  again  visible,  we  discovered  that  we  had 
gone  beyond  the  place  where  the  depot  had  been  formed,  and 
found  by  the  chart,  that  we  were  in  75°  40'  lat.  and  58°  long. 
But  as  the  loss  of  time,  in  going  back  a  distance  of  a  hundred 
miles,  was  out  of  all  proportion  to  the  amount  of  provisions 
we  could  have  taken   in  our  overladen  boats,  we  determined 
at  all  risks  to  hold  on  our  course. 

7.  Before  us,  in  the  far  distance,  now  rose  above  the  horizon 
the   higher  parts  of  Admiralty  Peninsula ;  to  these  we  now 
steered.     As  we  passed  along  we  made  a  vain  attempt  to  land 
on  the  north  of  Gwosdarew  Bay.     We  found  the  shores  full 
of  cliffs,  between  which  a  heavy  surf  was  breaking,  and  could 
thus  form  some  notion  of  the  perils  we  should  have  encoun- 
tered,  had  we  attempted  to  land  on   the  Barentz    Islands. 
Two  years  ago  the  edge  of  this  coast  had  been  covered  with 
firm  ice,  and  the  depot  had  been  formed  by  the  aid  of  sledges. 
-But  now  not  a  fragment  of  ice  was  to  be  seen  on  the  west 
coast  of  Novaya  Zemlya,  and  the  rocky  shore  could  only  be 
approached  by  boats. 

8.  The  differences  between  the  climate  in  the  years  1872  and 
1874,  were  also  in  other  respects  very  remarkable.     In   1872 
the  mountains  of  the  country  were  mostly  covered  with  snow, 
but  in  '1874,  it  lay  only  on  the  higher  parts  of  its  glaciers,  and 
in  latitude  76°  N.,  where  we  had  found  thick  ice,  the  tempera- 
ture of  the  sea  was  39°  F.,  and  of  the  air  43°  F.     The  pheno- 


AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES. 


[CHAP. 


mena  of  the  climate  of  1871,  as  we  observed  them  in  the 
voyage  of  the  Isbjorn,  were  similar  to  those  of  1874;  and 
this  peculiar  mildness  was  experienced  on  the  eastern  coasts 
of  Novaya  Zemlya  by  Captain  Wiggins,  who  when  navigating 
the  sea  of  Cara  as  far  as  the  mouth  of  the  Ob,  was  shut  in 
there  by  the  ice  for  a  few  weeks  only. 

9.  The  inaccessibility  of  most  of  the  places  on  the  coast 
had  hitherto  obliged  us  to  continue  our  course  without  going 
on  shore  to  rest,  although  our  arms  were  stiff  and  swollen 
with  our  exertions  in  rowing.  No  vessels  as  yet  had  been 


LANDING   ON   THE   COAST    OF    NOVAYA    ZEMLYA. 


seen,  and  what  we  thought  to  be  a  ship  turned  out,  when  we 
rowed  closer  to  it,  to  be  only  a  small  iceberg.  There  was 
therefore  no  other  alternative  than  to  coast  along  in  a  southerly 
direction,  cutting  across  the  bays,  and  keeping  as  near  the 
shore  as  possible.  On  the  night  of  the  I7th  we  pulled  over 
the  broad  Gwosdarew  Bay,  which  was  filled  with  countless 
fragments  of  glaciers.  Some  of  the  smallest  of  these  we 
took  on  board  our  boats  to  replenish  our  fast  decreasing 
supplies  of  water.  Ever  since  our  coming  under  the  coast  of 
Novaya  Zemlya,  we  had  entered  a  region  where  auks  abounded 
which  whizzed  over  our  heads  with  small  crayfish  in  their  bills 
in  their  flight  to  the  land,  or  sat  so  indolently  on  the  water, 


III.]  ON  THE  OPEN  SEA.  381 

that  they  seemed  determined  not  to  get  out  of  the  way  of  the 
boats.  Many  were  bagged,  but  we  made  no  halt  to  shoot 
them.  Twice  only  in  the  day  we  rested  for  about  ten  minutes 
to  take  our  food.  Onwards  we  pressed,  each  boat  striving  to 
get  before  the  others.  On  August  17  the  sun  set  for  the  first 
time  about  midnight,  and  in  the  afternoon  of  the  1 8th  we 
landed  at  a  spot  to  the  south  of  black  Cape,  remarkable  for 
the  luxuriance  of  its  vegetation.  To  our  eyes,  accustomed  to 
the  monotonous  white  of  snow  and  ice,  it  appeared  like  a 
garden.  There  was  nothing  to  remind  us  of  a  polar  region 
either  in  the  land,  or  in  the  temperature,  or  in  the  weather. 
Its  broad  bay,  if  it  had  been  without  its  circle  of  glaciers, 
would  have  appeared  like  an  Italian  gulf.  It  was  now  ebb- 
tide, and  wading  in  the  water  we  shoved  our  boats,  using  the 
oars  as  rollers,  over  the  muddy  shore.  It  was  the  birthday  of 
our  gracious  monarch,  which  we  celebrated  in  the  best  manner 
we  could — we  dressed  the  boats  with  flags,  washed  ourselves 
in  a  little  fresh-water  lake,  and  flavoured  our  weak  tea  with  a 
small  quantity  of  alcohol. 

10.  This  was  the  first  land  on  which  we  had  set  foot  for 
months.     Completely  exhausted  we  lay  down  on  its  damp 
turf  and  listened  to  the  pleasant  sound  of  the  surf.     Flames 
soon  rose  from  the  pile  of  drift  wood  we  collected,  while  some 
of  us  ascended  the  neighbouring  ravines,  and  even  gathered 
flowers.1     There  were   quantities   of  forget-me-nots,   and    of 
coltsfoot  (Tiisselago  farfara),  which  was  dried  and  smoked, 
and  pronounced  to  be  excellent  tobacco.     But  our  paradisiacal 
happiness  could  not  be  of  long  duration.     The  necessity  of 
finding  a  ship  as  quickly  as  possible  was  urgent,   and   soon 
roused  us  from  our  deep  sleep,  while  the   thunders  of  the 
glaciers  of  Novaya  Zemlya  proclaimed  to  us  that  bad  weather 
was  not  far  off. 

11.  On  the  i  Qth,  we  coasted  along  Admiralty  Peninsula; 
the  thermometer    giving  50°  F.  in    the    air,    and    43°  F.   in 
the  sea.     Its  shores  rising  in  a   succession  of  terraces  were 
indisputable  evidence  of  its  gradual  elevation  above  the  sea- 

1  Baer  brought  home  from  Novaya  Zemlya  ninety  species  of  Phanerogams. 
According  to  an  observation  of  Mojssejew,  June  18,  1839,  the  thermometer  in  the 
sun  stood  at  93°  F.,  and  59°  F.  in  the  shade. 


382  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

level,1  and  the  flatness  of  the  shores  and  the  shallowness  of 
the  sea,  interspersed  with  rocks,  easily  explain  why  they  have 
so  often  been  dangerous  to  ships  approaching  them  in  a  fog. 
As  we  came  further  south  the  charts  proved  more  trustworthy. 
At  noon  of  the  2Oth  at  Cape  Tischernitzky  we  reached 
latitude  74°  21'.  We  passed  a  number  of  picturesque  bights 
on  the  coast,  with  mountains,  whose  tops  were  covered  with 
clouds,  and  whose  green  banks  extended  along  the  shores. 
These  are  the  favourite  wintering  spots  of  Russian  expeditions, 
and  in  some  places  we  saw  ruined  huts.  On  the  2 1st  a  fresh 
wind  sprung  up  from  the  east.  The  sea'  rose,  and  as  we  sailed 
fast  before  the  wind  the  boats  took  in  a  good  deal  of  water, 
and  we  were  thoroughly  wet ;  the  boats,  too  got  separated. 
We  accordingly  ran  into  the  bay  under  "  Suchoi  Nos  "  (73° 
47'  L.)  to  wait  till  the  wind  fell  and  the  other  boats  should 
join  us.  The  boat  commanded  by  Lieutenant  Brosch,  was 
exposed  to  much  danger  from  the  lowness  of  its  gunwale, 
when  the  sea  was  at  all  high  ;  an  addition  made  to  it  by 
a  strip  of  canvas  stretched  round  the  boat  proved  ineffectual. 
We  quickly  dried  our  clothes  at  a  fire  made  of  drift-wood  and 
erratics  of  brown  coal  which  we  found,  but  were  much  dis- 
appointed that  no  reindeer  were  to  be  seen,  though  we  were 
surrounded  by  excellent  feeding-grounds  for  these  animals. 
The  stew,  which  we  made  from  the  spoonwort  we  gathered, 
and  some  pemmican,  was  but  a  poor  substitute  for  the  venison 
we  had  hoped  to  enjoy.  Neither  were  there  any  auks  to  be 
seen,  and  the  divers  shot  under  the  water  like  stones  when- 
ever we  came  within  distance.  The  other  boats  having  joined 
us  we  again  put  to  sea,  though  the  weather  was  threatening 
and  a  high  sea  running.  In  latitude  73°  20'  we  ran  into 
Matoschkin  Bay,  hoping  and  expecting  to  find  a  vessel 
engaged  in  the  fisheries.  But  no  vessel  was  to  be  seen, 
nothing  but  the  outlines  of  an  Arctic  mountain-land.  Carlsen 
also,  whom  Weyprecht  had  despatched  to  explore  the  straits 
so  full  of  turnings  and  windings,  returned  without  the 

1  On  older  charts  it  is  still  separated  by  a  sound  from  the  mainland.  The  layers 
of  drift-wood,  which  we  found  everywhere  at  a  considerable  height  above  the  level 
of  the  sea,  show  beyond  a  doubt  that  the  coast  of  Novaya  Zemlya  has  gradually 
risen  ;  but  as  in  those  latitudes  this  wood  rots  only  after  centuries, we  have  no 
measure  to  estimate  the  rate  of  this  movement. 


III.]  ON  THE  OPEN  SEA.  383 

intelligence  we  hoped  for.  Before  Carlsen  rejoined  us  we  ran 
into  a  cove — Altglaubigen  Bucht — -and  erected,  on  a  con- 
spicuous headland,  a  cairn,  on  which  we  placed  a  signal  post 
made  of  drift-wood.  In  this  cairn  we  deposited  a  document, 
briefly  describing  the  course  of  our  expedition  up  to  that 
date,  in  order  to  leave  some  trace  of  it  in  a  region  which  is 
visited  annually  by  ships.  The  discovery  of  this  statement 
in  the  course  of  the  next  summer  would  prevent  our  country- 
men at  home  from  sending  out  vessels  to  rescue  us  in  higher 
latitudes,  if  we  meanwhile  should  perish. 

12.  The  prospects  of  our  being  saved  had,   in  fact,  con- 
siderably diminished,  for  all  our  hopes  had  been  centred  in 
finding  a  vessel  in  Matoschkin  Straits,  and  these,  as  I   have 
just   said,  were   doomed   to   be   disappointed.     Carlsen  now 
returned  with  the  information,  that,  in  the  narrow  seas  he  had 
visited,  he  had  met  with  nothing  but  a  whale-boat,  lying  keel 
upwards,  round  which  were  footmarks  of  not  very  recent  date. 
There  was  no  doubt,  therefore,  that  the  fishing  vessels  had 
withdrawn  from  our  high  latitudes.     At  night  a  storm  from 
the  north-east  roared  over  the  cliffs  surrounding  the  cove,  and 
the  surf  breaking  on  the  rocks  reached  our  boats. 

13.  It  was  noon  on  the  23rd  before  we  could  continue  our 
voyage.     Our  provisions  would  last  for  only  ten  days  more,  so 
that  our  fate  must  shortly  be  decided.     Further  delay  was  out 
of  the  question ;  there  was  but  one  hope  for  us — to  press  on 
and  find  a  ship  in   Dunen-Bai  (the  Bay  of  Dunes).     Should 
this  too  prove  deceptive,  we  must  then  make  the  desperate 
venture   of  crossing   the   White    Sea,   direct   to  Lapland — a 
distance    of    520    miles.      To    follow    the    vast    circuit    of 
the   coast-line   would  have  been   impossible   to  us  with  our 
stock  of  provisions,   and  at   that  season  of  the  year.     The 
next  .days     too    plainly    taught    us   what  would    have    be- 
come of  our  small  boats  had  we  been  forced  to  attempt  that 
passage. 

14.  We  now  rowed  and  sailed  alternately  down  the  flat 
coasts   towards    "  Ganseland,"  amid    stormy  weather,  during 
which   the  boats  were  often  separated,  and  we  almost  ex- 
hausted our  strength  in  baling  out  the  water.     We  lost  sight 
completely  of  Weyprecht's  boat  on  the  open  sea,  and  of  the 
others  under  the  coast.      That  in  which   Orel  and   I  were, 


384  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP.  III. 

appeared  to  have  out-sailed  them,  and  we,  therefore,  on  the 
morning  of  the  24th  drew  to  shore  in  a  dark  rocky  cove  to 
await  the  approach  of  our  missing  friends.  Wet  through  and 
through  we  sprang  into  the  shallow  water,  and  by  a  great 
effort  drew  the  boat  to  land.  We  then  kindled  a  fire  with  the 
drift-wood  we  gathered,  and  after  making  and  eating  a  kind  of 
dumpling  we  sank  down  to  sleep  on  the  wet  stones,  amid  the 
smoke  from  our  fire,  thoroughly  exhausted.  So  passed  away 
four  hours.  When  we  awoke  we  ascended  a  height,  and  as 
there  was  not  a  single  vestige  of  a  boat  to  be  seen,  we  deter- 
mined to  put  to  sea  again.  Near  Cape  Britwin  (Lat.  72°  40'), 
the  wind  and  sea  fell,  and  the  boats  again  joined  company. 
It  was  now  deemed  necessary  to  make  an  equitable  division 
among  the  crews  of  the  provisions  that  remained,  and  this 
being  done,  we  took  to  our  oars  once  more,  and  pulled  into 
the  boundless  waste  of  waters — into  the  mystery  that  hung 
over  our  destiny. 

15.  But  the  hour  of  our  deliverance  was  nearer  than  we 
thought.     It  was  evening  as  we  glided  past  the  black  weather- 
worn rocks  of  Cape  Britwin,  the  ledges  of  which  were  covered 
with  flocks  of  birds,  revelling  in  the  spray  of  the  surf.     Then 
about  seven  o'clock  a  cry  of  joy  as  from  one  voice  arose  from 
the  boats.     A  fifth  small  boat  with  two  men  in  it  lay  before 
us,  apparently  engaged  in  bird  catching.     They  pulled  towards 
us,  not  less  amazed  than  we  ourselves  were,  and  before  either 
party  could  explain  itself,  we  turned  a  corner  of  the  rock — 
there  lay  two  ships. 

1 6.  It  is  with  a  certain  kind   of   awe  and  reverence  that 
a  shipwrecked  man  approaches  a  ship,  whose  slender  build  is 
to  deliver  him   from  the  capricious  power  of   the  elements. 
To  him  it  is  no  lifeless  machine,  but  a  friend  in  need,  yea, 
a  higher  creation  than  himself.     Such  were  our  feelings  as  we 
neared  the  two  schooners  which  lay  a  few  hundred  yards  off 
in  a  rock-encircled  bay.     To  us  at  that  moment  these  vessels 
were  the  sum  total  of  the  whole  world  !     Dressing  our  boats 
with  flags,  we  followed  the  strangers  in  their  boat,  and  made 
fast  to  the  schooner  Nikolai,  whose  deck  was  in  a  moment 
crowded    with    bearded    Russians,   who   stared   at    us   with 
mingled  feelings  of  wonder  and  sympathy,  and  whose  captain, 
Feodor  Voronin,  stood  like  a  patriarch  among  them  to  welcome 


386  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  CHAP. 

us.  Ten  days  sooner  and  our  poor  dogs  might  have  gambolled 
on  the  deck  with  us  ! 

17.  No  grandees  could  have  been  received  with  more  dignity 
than  we  were.     At  the  sight  of  the  two  Ukases,  which  we 
had   received    from   St.  Petersburg,  and    which    required  all 
inhabitants  of  the  Russian  Empire  to  furnish  us  with  all  the 
help  we  needed,  these  humble  seamen  bared  their  heads  and 
bowed  themselves  to  the  earth.     We  had  an  example  before 
us  to  show  how  orders  are  obeyed  by  the   subjects  of  that 
Empire  a  thousand  miles    from  the  place   where  they  were 
issued.     But  we  were  received    not  only  in  this    reverential 
manner,   but  were    welcomed    with  the    greatest   heartiness, 
and  the  best  of   everything  on  board  was  spread  before  us 
— salmon,  reindeer  flesh,  Eider-geese  eggs,  tea,  bread,  butter, 
brandy.      The    second    skipper    then    came    on    board,    and 
invited  us  to  visit  him  :    the  first  of  a  series  of  invitations. 
Dr.  Kepes   was   very  pressingly  invited,  for    he  had    a  sick 
man  on  board    his  vessel,  and  our   doctor  returned  with  an 
honorarium  of  tobacco  in  his  hand.     These  simple  Russian 
seamen  of  the  Arctic  seas  freely  produced  their  little  stock 
of  good  things  to  give   us  pleasure,  and  one  of  them  after 
observing    me    for   a    long  time,    and    thinking   that  I    did 
not  express  myself  sufficiently  strongly  for    a    happy  man, 
persuaded  himself  that  something  was  the  matter  with  me, 
and  that  I    wanted    something.     Forthwith    he  went   to  his 
chest,  and  brought  me  all  the  white  bread  he  had  and  the 
whole  remaining  stock  of   his  tobacco.     Though   I   did  not 
understand    a   word   he  said,   his   address   was   full   of    un- 
mistakable heartiness,  and  so  far  needed  no  interpreter. 

1 8.  Since   we  abandoned    the    Tegetthoff,  we    had    passed 
ninety-six    days  in  the  open  air,  and,   including  the  sledge 
journeys  which  preceded  the  abandonment  of  the  ship,  about 
five  months.     The   impressions  of  a  return  to   life  were  felt 
by  us  with  silent  yet  deep  thankfulness  of  heart,  for  as  the 
poet  says  : — 

"Das  Schweigen  ist  ihr-bester  Herold." 

It  gave  us  infinite  satisfaction  to  gaze  on  things  the  most 
insignificant,  and  as  we  thought  of  our  adventures,  our  dis- 
coveries, and  our  deliverance,  many  of  us  asked  his  heart 


ill.]  ON  THE  OPEN  SEA.  387 

_ , 

in  a  whisper :  What  will  be  said  of  this  in  Austria  ?  Lusina, 
as  the  only  one  among  us  who  spoke  Russian,  was  constituted 
our  interpreter,  and  through  him  we  learnt  that  great  events 
had  happened  during  our  absence  :  that  there  was  general 
peace  in  Europe  ;  that  Napoleon  was  dead  ;  and  we  learnt 
too  that  the  greatest  interest  in  our  destiny  had  been  excited 
in  Austria  ;  that  the  Russian  government  had  issued  orders  to 
all  their  vessels  employed  in  the  Arctic  fisheries  to  do  their 
utmost  to  find  us,  and  contribute  to  our  rescue  ;  that  Count 
Wilczek  had  returned  in  safety — the  skipper  of  our  schooner 
having  met  him  at  the  mouth  of  the  Petschora,  just  as  he  was 
setting  out  for  Obdorsk,  and  lastly,  that  a  Norwegian  fishing 
vessel  had  been  beset  in  the  ice  in  the  autumn  of  1872  at 
the  Barentz  islands — very  near  to  where  we  were,  and  had 
been  crushed ;  that  four  of  the  crew  had  escaped  in  a  boat, 
and  after  the  most  dreadful  sufferings,  had  travelled  over  land 
to  the  country  of  the  Samoyedes  in  the  extreme  north  of  the 
Ural  Mountains.  IttO 

19.  The  ships  we  found  in  "  Dunen  Bai," — the  Bay  of  Dunes 
— came  from  Archangel,  and   were  engaged  in  the  salmon 
fishery,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Puhova  River.     They  had  taken 
very  little,  and  their  purpose  was  to  remain  where  we  found 
them  for  fourteen  days'  longer,  and  to  spend  about  the  same 
number  in  fishing  and  hunting  at  the  southern  extremity  of 
Novaya  Zemlya.     This  programme  was  not  exactly  to  our 
taste.     To  spend  a  month  in  a  fishing-vessel,  just  as  we  awoke 
to  the  remembrance  of  all  the  comforts  and  pleasures  there 
are  in  the  world,  to  sleep  in  the  hold  where  cholera  lurked 
among  bear  and  reindeer  hides,  amid  heaps  of  salmon  and 
reindeer  flesh,  among  nets  and  oil  casks— such  a  prospect  was 
not  to  be  thought  of.     Accordingly,  we  agreed  with  Captain 
Voronin,  that  he    should  leave   off   his  fishing    and  take  us 
without  delay  to  Vardo,  in  Norway,  that  we  should  give  him 
in  return  for  his  services  three  of  our  boats,  two  Lefaucheur 
rifles,  and  guarantee  him  the  further  compensation  of  1,200 
silver  roubles. 

20.  At  last  we  could  go  to  sleep,  the  much-needed,  much- 
desired  sleep,  undisturbed  by  the  fear  lest  we  should  be  starved 
to  death  at  last.     On  that  evening,  when  I  opened  my  journal, 
I  found  these  words  :  "  Shall  we  be  saved  this  day  ?  shall  we 


388  AUSTRIAN  ARCTIC  VOYAGES.  [CHAP. 

be  alive  ?  Fifteenth  May  on  board  the  Tegetthoff?  \  had 
written  these  words  by  the  merest  chance  on  the  blank  leaf 
reserved  for  the  24th  of  August,  and  it  was  singular  that  we  . 
should  be  rescued  on  that  very  day.  For  a  long  time  I  could 
not  sleep  amid  the  murmur  of  Russian  words,  which  I 
mechanically  endeavoured  to  imitate  and  to  interpret  as  I  lay 
amid  the  dead  salmon,  till  at  last  I  fell  asleep,  my  last  con- 
nected thought  being,  that  I  had  not  to  row  any  more.  Next 
day  Voronin  and  his  trusty  harpooner,  Maximin  Iwanoff, 
insisted  on  Weyprecht  and  myself  occupying  their  own  cabin, 
and  as  we  could  utter  no  other  Russian  word  than  '  khorosho  ' 
(good),  we  were  obliged  to  do  as  they  wished.  The  ship  was 
now  watered,  and  the  nets  which  had  been  stretched  out  were 
hauled  on  board,  the  crew,  as  they  worked,  singing  their  wild 
"  Volkslieder  "  excellently  well. 

21.  On  the  26th  we  left  the  small  quiet  bay,  the  scene  of 
our  happy  rescue,  and  with  a  favourable  wind  from  the  north, 
the  vessel  ploughed  her  way  through  the  waves  of  the  White 
Sea.     Now  began  the  time  of   letter  writing ;    many  of   us, 
indeed,  had  commenced  this  employment  even  before  we  left 
the  boats.     On  the  2/th  and   28th,  we  had  stormy  weather 
from  the  north-west,  and  the  high  seas  we  saw  told  us  what 
our  fate  would  have  been  had  we  tried  to  cross  this  sea  in  our 
small  boats.     On  the   2Qth,  we   sighted   Black   Cape  on  the 
"  Murmann  coast,"  and  for  two  hundred  miles  we  ran  under 
the  low,  rocky  coast  of  Lapland.     We  often  fell  in  with  ships 
sailing  from  or  to  Archangel,  and  in  our  own  eyes  we  seemed 
the  only  barbarians  amid  the  commerce  and  civilization  of  the 
world.     We  sent  deputations  to  every  ship  that  came  within 
hailing  distance  to   beg  tobacco  or  sheets  of  writing  paper, 
without,  however,  betraying  our  incognito.     We  desired  to  be 
the  first  to  give  news  of  ourselves  by  the  telegraph.     Contrary 
winds  compelled  our  captain  to  tack    often,  and  the  delay 
seemed  to  our  impatience  purgatory  itself. 

22.  At  length   on  the  3rd   of  September — the  8i2th  day 
from  the  day  we  sailed  from  Bremerhaven — we  sighted  the 
little  seaport   of  Vardo.      Forthwith  the  Austrian  flag  was 
displayed  at  the  foretop  of  the  Nikolai,  while  each  of  us,  clad 
in  his  fur-coat,  stood  with  beating  hearts  on   deck   ready  to 
land.     Soon  she  ran  into  the  little  harbour,  and  about  three 


ill.]  ON  THE  OPEN  SEA.  389 

o'clock  in  the  afternoon  of  that  same  day  we  put  our  feet  on 
Norwegian  soil  with  the  glad  thought  that  our  dangers  and 
our  toils  were  over  at  last.  While  Weyprecht  attended  to 
our  money  affairs,  I  hastened,  amid  the  wondering  looks  of 
the  inhabitants,  to  the  telegraph  station  to  despatch  the  news 
of  our  happy  rescue  and  safe  arrival,  and  as  each  message 
sped  on  its  way,  our  hearts  glowed  with  joy  as  we  thought 
that  in  a  few  minutes  friends  and  countrymen  would  learn 
the  good  tidings  and  share  in  our  joy. 

23.  On  the  5th  the  mail  steamer  from  Vardo  to  Hamburg 
took  us  on  board,  and  stopping  at  Tromso,  we  put  ashore, 
with  many  adieus,  our  friend  and  companion  Captain  Carlsen. 
He  had  been  one  of  those  who  believed  that  we  should 
return  home  by  Behring  Straits  ;  but  here  he  landed,  a 
touching  instance  of  the  vanity  of  human  hopes.  Apart  from 
his  linguistic  acquirements — for  he  had  learnt  to  speak  several 
languages  on  board  the  Tegetthoff- — the  hardy  old  Arctic 
voyager  went  ashore  with  three  things  only  ;  his  carefully 
preserved  reindeer  coat,  his  wig,  and  trusty  walrus  spear. 
But  all  our  hearts  burned  to  reach  home — home  for  its  own 
sake  ;  for  no  presentiment  had  any  of  us  of  the  honours  that 
awaited  our  arrival  there.  The  favours  shown  to  us  by  our 
monarch,  the  enthusiasm  which  greeted  the  news  of  the 
discoveries  we  had  so  marvellously  made,  the  sympathy  so 
abundantly  expressed  for  our  sufferings,  made  us  feel  that  we 
were  rewarded  far  beyond  our  deserts,  and  that  we  had  gained 
the  highest  men  can  gain — the  recognition  of  their  services 
by  their  fellow-countrymen. 


'•*> 


APPENDIX. 
I. 

METEOROLOGICAL  OBSERVATIONS. 

THE  meteorological  observations  were  always  taken  by  the  officers  of 
the  watch,  by  Lieutenant  Brosch,  Midshipman  Orel,  the  boatswain 
Lusina,  and  Captain  Carlsen.  Krisch,  our  engineer,  who  shared  in 
this  labour  during  the  first  winter  was  exempted  from  it  in  the  second 
year,  owing  to  his  failing  health.  Readings  of  the  thermometers 
were  taken  every  two  hours  ;  observations  to  ascertain  the  moisture 
of  the  air  were  made  by  the  psychrometer  during  the  summer  months  ; 
the  direction  and  force  of  the  winds,  the  amount  of  precipitation,  the 
form  and  character  of  the  clouds  were  carefully  noted  down.  As 
their  labours  were  zealously  and  conscientiously  carried  out  for  one 
year  and  a  half,  and  chiefly  in  regions  never  before  visited,  the  results 
are  of  peculiar  importance.1  The  direction  and  force  of  the  winds 
seemed  in  the  first  year  to  be  nearly  in  equilibrium,  save  that  in  the 
south  air-currents  from  the  south-west  generally  prevailed,  while  in 
the  north  the  prevailing  air-currents  were  from  the  north-east. 

Thunder-storms  never  occurred ;  even  on  the  northern  shores  of 
Siberia  they  are  seldom  experienced.  The  forms  of  the  clouds  in 
Arctic  regions  have  never  the  sharply-defined  contours  of  those  in 
more  southerly  latitudes.  In  summer  they  increase  in  fulness,  and 
in  winter  they  consist  chiefly  of  vapours  and  frosty  mists  which  throw 
dark  inky  hues  over  the  brightness  of  the  nights.  The  proverbial 
clearness  of  the  heavens,  of  which  Koldewey,  Kane,  Middendorf, 
and  Wrangel  speak,  is  found  in  the  high  north,  as  also  in  the  tropics 
only  over  the  greater  masses  of  land.  "  The  clouds,"  says  Weyprecht, 
"  have  either  the  uniform  dull  grey  aspect  of  elevated  fog,  or  they 
assume  the  cirrus  form,  and  the  latter  is  not  as  with  us  the  fleecy 
mass  rising  high  above  the  horizon,  but  consists  of  masses  of  mist 
rising  little  above  it,  which  very  seldom  assume  the  sharply-defined 
forms  which  are  seen  in  more  southern  regions.  Instead  of  clouds 
gloomy  fogs  prevail,  sometimes  rising  high,  sometimes  also  close  to 
the  ground  as  if  they  were  nailed  to  it.  Four-and-twenty  hours  of 

1  These  have  not  as  yet  been  published. 

27 


392  APPENDIX. 


clear  weather  rarely  occur  in  summer ;  generally  after  shining  for  a 
few  hours  the  sun  disappears  behind  dense  fogs.  Dull  and  gloomy 
as  these  fogs  are,  they  maintain  the  conditions  which  we  find  in  the 
regions  of  ice, — they  prevent  the  escape  of  the  sun's  heat  and  they 
act  more  potently  on  the  ice  than  its  direct  rays."  With  respect  to 
the  winds  he  adds  :  "  Until  the  autumn  of  the  second  year,  the 
winds  were  of  a  very  variable  nature.  In  the  neighbourhood  of 
Novaya  Zemlya  we  had  many  south-east  and  south-west  winds ;  in 
the  spring  the  winds  were  more  from  the  north-east.  A  prevailing 
direction  of  the  wind  was  only  discernible  when  we  lay  in  our 
second  winter  under  Franz-Josef  Land.  Here  all  snow-storms  and 
about  50  per  cent,  of  the  winds  come  from  east-north-east.  These 
winds  were  mostly  accompanied  by  clouds,  which  were  dispersed 
only  when  the  wind  veered  more  to  the  north.  The  force  of  the 
wind  is  mitigated  by  the  ice.  Very  frequently  fog  masses  are  seen 
driving  rapidly  at  no  very  great  height  above  the  ice,  while  below 
them  there  is  almost  a  calm.  In  the  January  of  the  two  years  we 
passed  in  the  north,  it  was  very  interesting  to  observe  the  struggle 
between  the  cold  winds  from  the  north  and  the  warmer  winds  of  the 
south.  The  approach  of  warm  winds  from  the  south  and  south-west 
brought  masses  of  snow,  and  in  a  short  time  produced  a  rise  of 
temperature  amounting  to  67°  to  79°  F." 

Falls  of  snow  take  place  at  all  seasons  of  the  year ;  but  as  they 
generally  occur  accompanied  with  strong  winds,  it  is  not  very  easy 
to  determine  the  depth  of  the  layers.  Apart  from  extreme  cases  of 
snow-drifts  the  mean  depth  of  the  snow  on  the  ice  during  winter 
was  about  three  feet,  and  it  is  more  considerable  under  the  land  than 
at  a  distance  from  it.  Rain  falls  almost  exclusively  only  during  the 
few  months  of  summer,  and  generally  in  fine  showers,  never  in  the 
sudden  torrents  of  southern  latitudes.  More  rain  fell  with  us  in  our 
second  than  in  our  first  summer. 

I  was  impossible,  owing  to  our  continual  change  of  place,  to  give 
the  barometrical  means  for  any  particular  locality  ;  in  the  following 
table,  therefore,  the  monthly  mean  only  is  noted.  The  thermometers 
we  used  were  placed  at  the  distance  of  five-and-twenty  paces  from 
the  ship,  so  that  they  were  pretty  well  isolated  from  any  influence 
due  to  it,  and  they  were  raised  four  feet  above  the  surface  of  the 


snow. 


Readings  of  the  minimum  thermometer  were  taken  at  noon  every 
day  in  the  year,  and  of  the  black-bulb  thermometer  at  different 
times  of  the  day  during  the  summer.  The  time  of  the  day  when  the 
temperature  reached  its  maximum  was  irregular  during  the  winter ;  it 

1  Thermometers  should  always  hang  freely  ;  when  they  are  enclosed  in  cases  they 
give  false  values,  especially  if  the  cases  should  be  filled  with  snow.  In  our  first 
winter  we  were  obliged  on  account  of  the  ice-pressures  to  suspend  our  thermome- 
ters on  the  ship  in  such  cases,  and  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  their  readings  were 
too  high.  Sometimes,  however,  they  were  too  low,  when  the  thermometers  came 
in  contact  with  the  snow  on  the  ship.  Scoresby,  Parry,  and  we  ourselves  observed 
that  the  temperature  of  the  snow-covering  sometimes  sunk  in  clear  winter  nights 
some  degrees  below  the  temperature  of  the  air. 


APPENDIX. 


393 


occurred  about  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  when  the  spring  was  well 
advanced.  As  I  have  already  inserted  in  the  course  of  the  narrative 
the  temperatures  of  each  day  in  the  month,  it  will  be  enough  for  the 
purposes  of  a  general  survey  to  give  here  a  summary  of  the  mean 
monthly  temperatures  and  of  the  maximum  and  minimum  extremes : — 


Mean  of  the 
Barometrical 
Measurements. 

Mean  of  the 
Monthly 
Temperature. 

Maximum. 
R. 

Minimum. 
R. 

1872. 

Tulv 

_ 



- 

—    2"4 

August       .... 
September 

750-99 
748-92 

+    0-41 

-  7  '34 

+  6-5 
+  0-4 

-   5-6 
-18-6 

October     .... 

7SI'8 

-I3-5 

+    2-0 

-26-5 

November  .... 

757-27 

-19-52 

-    2'3 

-287 

December  .... 

757'" 

-23  '95 

-I4-9 

-287 

1873- 

January      .... 

753-69  ' 

-18-1 

—     2'I 

-35-i 

February   .... 

741-62 

-27-95 

-    1-8 

-36-9 

March 

74.8  "2  1 

—  2^  '^2 

•  —  14.  'A 

—  3VQ     . 

April     

/T-^*  *•  *• 
753^4 

*3  j* 
-17-49 

*•'*  *t 

-    6-8 

oj  y 
-  30-9 

May 

7c6-c8 

—    7'12 

—     I*Q 

—  18-4. 

Tune                          . 

/  j"  j" 
7^1'^ 

/   x^ 
—     O'4.I 

+  8-? 

JptJ  T- 

—   8-6 

Tulv 

/  3  *  3 
7W23 

w  4.1 

+  1-26 

4-    6-4. 

—    1-8 

August                 . 

/  0         J 
'7AQ"IT. 

+    O"*2 

T     *J  q. 

-»-    4.  "4. 

—    4/6 

September      .     .     . 

/T*:/  jj 
747-79 

T      »->   J* 
-       S^ 

-r      <|.  q. 
+      I'3 

T"  v 

-12-4 

October     .... 

745-64 

-   I3-93 

-      2'9 

-23-1 

November.     .     .     . 

748-2 

-  21-21 

-   6-2 

-31-8 

December  .... 

744-98 

-23-08 

—  IO'I 

-34 

1874. 

January      .... 
February   .... 
March                  .     . 

732-97 
744^2 

74.2  '2^ 

—  19-6 

-22-83 

—  18-4.6 

-  1-7 
-  1-7 

—     I  "O 

-367 
-35;5 

April          .          . 

/T"        ~J 

TCI'IC 

At_J  qv 

—  I2"\2 

—    2'8 

—  22*8 

/  j1  *0 

»«  o*1 

Note. — The  temperatures  are  given  in  Reaumur  degrees.     By  adding  one-fourth, 
the  numbers  given  in  the  three  last  columns' will  be  reduced  to  Centigrade  degrees. 


394 


APPENDIX. 


II. 


DIRECTION  AND  FORCE  OF  THE  WIND, 
FROM  OBSERVATIONS  ON  BOARD  THE  "  TEGETTHOFF.' 


Mean  Direction  and 

Mean  Direction  and 

Force. 

Force. 

Direction. 

Force. 

Direction. 

Force. 

1872. 

May  31  ... 

N5°W 

0'53 

July  15.     •     • 
August  31  . 
September  30  . 
October  31.     . 
November  30  . 
December  31  . 

N53°E 
Ss6°W 
S45°W 
S23°E 
S7i°E 
S44°E 

1-36 
I'lS 

o'54 
0*43 

O'26 

0-64 

June  30      .     . 
July  31  ... 
August  31  .     . 
September  30 
October  3  1 
November  30  . 
December  31  . 

S79°E 
N74°W 
S48°E 
S53°E 
N42°E 
N54°E 
N66°E 

0-97 
0-82 
031 
0-I4 
1-82 
I'lO 
I  '21 

1873- 

1874. 

January  31  .     . 
February  28    . 

S64°W 

N32°E 

1-24 

0-26 

January  31 
February  28     . 

S7o°E 

N47°E 

0'93 

i'i6 

March  31    .     . 

N37°E 

0-63 

March  31   .     . 

N59°W 

0-83 

April  30     .     . 

N6i°E 

0-53 

April  30     .     . 

N8o°E 

0-94 

INDEX. 


Actiniae,  269 

Alcohol,  the  best  fuel,  225 

Amphipoda,  268 

Amygdaloids,  261 

Annelides,  270 

Antlers  of  reindeer,  superstition  respect- 
ing, 107 

Arctic  petrel,  267 

Arctic  sea,  temperature  of,  6,  68,  93 

Ascent  of  Cape  Briinn,  338 

Auk,  the,  267,  290,  380;  Cape,  306, 
308 

Aulis,  the  harbour  of,  352 

Auroras,  64,  120,  154,  179;  described, 
202  ;  sign  of  bad  weather,  203  ;  in- 
fluence of,  on  the  magnetic  needle, 
205  ;  described  by  Weyprecht,  206 

Austria  Sound,  271,  281,  289,  292 


Balloon,  use  of,  recommended,  36 
Barentz,    referred   to,    12,  28 ;  food  of 

his  party,  288 ;  islands,  described  by 

Prof.  Hofer,  86 ;   incorrect  maps  of, 

100;  sighted,  378 
Basaltic  formation  of  Franz -Josef  Land, 

260 

Bay-ice,  2 

Beaches,  raised,  264,  381 
Bear  Island,  56 
Bears,  97,  119,  144,  151,  154,  158,  238, 

240,  272,  276 ;  winter  hole,  276,  282, 

285,  288,  293,  318,  334,  337,  344, 

353,  36o,  367,  370 
Bears'  flesh,  338 
Bessels,  Dr.,  51 
Birds,  98,  154,  162,  179,  232,  266,  290, 

306,  315,  320,  334 
Black  Cape,  Novaya  Zemlya,  381      . 


Books  in  Tegetthofc  129,  186 
Boots,  sail-cloth,  232 
Bottles,  thrown  out,  148 
Britwin,  Cape,  384 
Bryopogon  jubatus,  265 
Buellia  stigmatea,  265 
Bunting,  snow,  267 


Cairn  erected,  383 

Calking  the  boats,  373 

Cape  Look-out,    58;  Frankfurt,    280; 

Nassau,  64  ;  North,  65 
Carlsen,  Captain  Olaf,  29,  77,  124,  132, 

182,  360,  389 
Cartridges,  130 
Cattabrosa  algida,  265 
Cattarinich,  255 
Cerastium  alpinum,  265 
Cetraria  nivalis,  265,  313 
Climate  of  Novaya  Zemlya,  379 
Clothes,  suitable,  45,  232 
Coal,    consumption    of,    in    Tegetthoff, 

128;   brown,    61,   260,    282;    house 

broken  up,  119 
Coast-water,  navigating  in,  12 
Coffins,  the  three,  89 
Cold,  246,  et  seqq. ;  effect  on  man,  250, 

25 I 

Colour  of  ice,  5  ;  of  sea,  14 
Coltsfoot,  gathered  in  Novaya  Zemlya, 

38i 

Commander,  qualities  requisite  for,  37 
Condensation,  44,  127,  195 
Cooking  apparatus  for  sledging,  224 
Cost  of  Polar  expedition,  45,  46 
Constants,  magnetic,  271 
Course  of  Tegetthoff,  147 
Crevasse,  fall  of  sledge  into,  300 
Crew  of  Tegetthoff,   76,   135,  136,  137, 

195 


396 


INDEX. 


Crinoidoe,  270 

Crown  Prince  Rudolfs  Land,  294 

Crow's-nest,  erected  in  Tegetthoff,  18 

Crustacese,  268 

Currents,  sea,  18;  of  the  Obi  and 
Jeinsy,  68 ;  air  and  equatorial,  meet- 
ing of,  64 ;  warm,  67 

Cyperacites,  grass  of,  as  foot-coverings, 
233 


D 


Darkness,  effects  of,  133,  149,  190 
Deflection  on  coast  of  Greenland,  1 8 
Depot  of  provisions,  327,  330 
Diarrhoea,    a   consequence  of   extreme 

cold,  251 
Divers,  290,  320 
Divine  service  celebrated  in  Tegetthoff, 

I31 

Docks  in  ice,  19 

Dogs,  89,  103,  118,  161,  191,  193,  220, 

233,  237,  297,    330,  337,  340,  346, 

359,  360  ;  death  of,  377 
Dolerite  rocks,  181,  261,  276,  282,  305, 

312,  318 

Dove,  Greenland,  267 
Dove,  Prof.,  on  the  temperature  at  the 

Pole,  27  ;  glaciers  named  after,  290 
Dress  of  the  Arctic  sledger,  231 
Driftwood,  61,  63,  66,  265,  383 
Dunen  Bay,  383,  387 


Easter  Sunday,  285 

Eclipse  of  the  sun,  160 

Eider  duck,  267 

Equipment  for  return  journey,  345 

Erratics,  261,  308 

Evaporation  from  ice,  7 

Expedition,  second  German,  13 ;  cost 
of  various  expeditions,  45 ;  equip- 
ment of,  34 


Fables  of  old  navigators,  23,  26 

Fenzl,  Prof.,  265 

Finnmark,  52 

Fish  described,  266 

Flag,  Austro-Hungarian,  planted,  82*5° 

Flea  crab,  268 
Fligely,  Cape,  311 

Floe,  or  field-ice,  2,  3,  4;  age  of,  4; 
colour  of,  5 


Food,  allowance,  42,  130,  131 
Forget-me-nots  in  Novaya  Zemlya,  381 
Fossils  in  Spitzbergen,  60 
Fox,  white,  as  food,  288 
Franklin,  diet  of  his  party,  288 
Franz-Josef  Land  surveyed,  23  7;  climate, 

260 
Frost-bite,  151,  241,  252;  remedies  for, 

252 

Fugloe,  54 
Furs,  231 
Fury,  the,  42 


G. 


Gadus,  266 

Geikie's  Great  Ice  Age,  extract  from, 
8 

Germania,  15 ;  Cape,  310 

Geological  formation,  Spitzbergen,  60 

Gillis'  Land,  66 

Glacier,  Dove,  263  ;  Forbes,  264 ;  Mid- 
dendorf,  263  ;  insects,  264 

Glaciers,  of  Novaya  Zemlya,  17;  of 
Spitzbergen,  60;  calving  of,  8;  in 
Franz-Josef  Land,  262 ;  height  of, 
ib. ;  colour  of,  ib. ;  motion  of,  ob- 
served, 344 

Gloves,  231 

Grasses,  265 

Greenland,  described,  259      ' 

Grog,  necessary,  245,  255,  329 

Gulf  stream,  28,  50,  51,  67,  68 

Gull,  burgomaster,  160,  267,  354; 
robber,  162,  267;  Ross's,  179,  267 

Gulyas,  soup,  362 

Gyrophora  anthracina,  265 


H 


Haller,  255,  304 

Hansa,  the,  15 

Health  in  Tegetthoff,  134,  151,  154,  173, 

201 

Hellwald,  Cape,  320 

Hippolyte  (Payeri),  267 

Hofer,  Prof.,  his  description  of  Barentz 
Isles,  86 

Hohenlohe  Island,  295 

Holothurise,  270 

Hoods,  knitted,  231 

Hope  Island,  57,  60 

Horizon  visible  from  Tegetthoff,  18 

Hornsuhdstint,  58,  60 

Hyalonema,  268 

Hydrochloric  acid  as  remedy  for  frost- 
bite, 252 

Hyperstentite  rocks,  261 


INDEX. 


397 


Ice,  bay,  2 ;  barrier,  62,  63 ;  blink, 
7;  birds,  160;  bergs,  height  of,  9; 
places  where  they  collect,  ib.;  over- 
setting of,  10,  331 ;  drift  southwards 
like  biers,  81 ;  forty  feet  high,  84, 
1 66;  in  Austria  Sound,  258;  detach- 
ment of,  264;  in  Rudolfs  Land,  299, 
308 

Ice-fields,  2,  4 

Ice-foot,  2 

Ice-holes,  I,  28 

Ice-needles,  5 

Ice-pressures,  102,  103,  in,  139 

Ice  (sea),  specific  gravity  of,  6 

Ice-sheet  over  Arctic  regions,  I 

Iceland  Knot,  267 

Iceland  moss,  88 

Imbricaria  stygia,  265 

Instruments  required  for  sledge  journey, 

221 

Isbjorn,  description  of,  51;  beset,  55; 

meets  Tegetthoff,  85,  89 
Isopada,  268 

J 

Journal,  passages  from,  106,  356—359 
Jurassic  formation  in  Spitzbergen,  60 


K 


Kaiser  Franz-Josefs  Land  discovered, 

175;  explored,  213,  253,  258—270 
Kepes,  Dr.,  267 
Kittiwake,  267 

Klotz,  his  singular  appearance,  334 
Knot  (Iceland),  267 
Korethrastes,  270 
Krisch,  death  of,  215,  255 


M 


M'Clintock,   on  sledge  travelling,  24  ; 

his   adventures   related  to   the  men, 

330 

Mangetic  constants  observed,  271 
Magnetic  readings,  343 
.Mallemoke,  267 
Matoschkin  Schar,  64 
Meals,  usual,  130 
Medusae  (Beroe)  found,  63 
Mess-room  described,  130 
Meteorological  observations,  343 
Middendorf  Glacier,  263,  299 
Moss,  265 


N 


Navigation,  in  coast  water,  12;  only 
possible  in  summer,  13 ;  best  season 
for,  14 

Nassau,  Cape,  64 

Night,  the  Polar,  190 

Nikolai,  rescue  by  the,  384 

Noise  made  by  ice-pressures,  no,  141, 
178 

Noon,  December  2ist  1873,  189 

Nordenskjold,  Prof.,  261 ;  Fiord,  244 

Normans,  the,  the  first  Polar  navigators, 

21 

North-East  Passage,  21 — 23 
North- West  Passage,  21—24 
Novaya  Zemlya  Sea,  65,  66,  67,  80,  99, 

171;  survey  of  necessary,  99;   coast 

of,  379 ;  climate  of,  ib. 
Novaya  Zemlya,  glaciers  of,  9 


0 


Orel,    274,    280,  281,   282,    295, 

308,  313,  314,  320,  326 
Ostjak  dogs,  234 
Owl,  snowy,  267 


Lamp  used,  45 

Land,  new,  discovered,  175  ;  visited,  I  Si 

Land-ice,  3 

Languages,  four,  spoken  in   Tegetthoff, 

132 

Leads  or  waterways,  I 
Leigh   Smith,    Mr.,    his   photographs, 

261 
Lichens,  265,    276;    used  as  tobacco, 

322 

Lignite,  322 
Liparis  gelatinosus,  266 
Littrow,  Cape,  244 
Lumme,  the,  267 
Lutke,  29 


Pachtussow,  29,  228 

Pack-ice,  2 

Papaver  medicale,  265,  322 

Paper  smoked  instead  of  tobacco,  372 

Parhelia,  99,  156,  178,  329 

Parry  referred  to  and  quoted,   12,  288, 

317 

Pay  of  different  Arctic  crews,  39 

Penny,  29 

Petermann,  Dr.,  on  the  influence  of  the 

Gulf  Stream,  28 
Petroleum  used,  128;  frozen  in  lamp, 

146 


398 


INDEX. 


Plancius,  his  theory  of  an  open  Polar 
sea,  28 

Plants,  collection  of,  265  ;  tropical,  found 
in  Spitzbergen,  28 

Plasticity  of  glacier  ice,  263 

Polar  question,  33 

Polar  sea  (open),  its  existence  ques- 
tioned, 25,  28;  Seas,  North  and 
South  compared,  14 

Pole,  North,  20,  27 

Polynia,  312 

Polypes,  hydroid,  270 

Provisions  fail,  373 ;  remnant  of,  divided, 
384 

Prince  Charles's  foreland,  58 

Pycnogonida,  268 

Pyrites  formed,  167 


R 


Rain,  its  effect  in  breaking  up  the  ice, 
368,  37o 

Return  to  Europe  resolved  on,  179,  200 

Reward  offered  by  the  English  and 
Dutch  for  the  discovery  of  the  North- 
West  Passage,  33 

Rhizocarpon  geographicum,  265,  313 

Rocks  of  Franz-Josef  Land,  261 

Rorqual  (whale),  63 

Ross,  Sir  James,  13,  16 

Ross,  Sir  John,  42,  44,  288 

Rotge,  267 

Russians,  kindness  of,  386 


Sledges  drawn  by  men  and  dogs,  219; 
equipment  of,  222-234;  description 
of,  223 ;  loading  of,  226 ;  boats  for, 
229 ;  in  a  snow-storm,  327 ;  aban- 
doned, 377 

Sleeping  bag  described,  225 

Smith's  Sound,  route  through,  35 

Snow-blindness,  317 

Snow-eaters,  253 

Snow-huts  described,  225 

Snow-line,  60,  262 

Snow,  fallen,  described,  5  ;  block,  254  ; 
constant  downfall  of,  188  ;  in  extreme 
cold,  250 

Snow,  red,  60 

Sonklar  glacier,  253 

Sound  propagated  freely  in  Polar  re- 
gions, 250 

Sound,  crackling  at  edge  of  ice,  6 

Soundings,  table  of,  172 

Speed,  rate  of,  15 

Spitzbergen,  58,  259 

Sponges,  268 

Sporastatia  Morio,  265 

Spring  (1873),  153 

Stove  used  on  Tegetthojf,  128 

Summer  (1873),   162;   end  of  second, 

174 

Sun-rise  (1873),  149;  (1874),  219 
Sun,  power  of,  163 
Sweet-water  ice,  2 
Swell  of  the  ocean,  13  ;  heard,  370 


Salm  I 

Sandoe,  Island  of,  54 

Saxifrage  on  the  Barentz  Isles,  87;  in 
Franz-Josef  Land,  265 

School  on  the  Tegetthoff,  137 

Scoresby,  29,  32 

Scurvy,  causes  of,  134;  signs  of,  196; 
in  various  expeditions  compared,  197 

Sea-ice,  specific  gravity  of,  6 

Sea-swallow,  267 

Sea-temperature,  5,  68 

Seals,  173,  266,  356,  364,  374 

Ship,  best  shape  of,  15 ;  small  pre- 
ferred, 1 6 ;  tonnage  of  different  Arctic 
ships,  41 

Shrimps,  267 

Silene  acaulis,  265,  322 

Sketches,  343 

Sketching  on  the  ice,  156 

Sledge  journey,  first,  235;  second,  271 ; 
third,  336 

Sledge  travelling,  216—221 ;  clothing 
for,  230 


Tactics  of  a  ship  in  ice,  1 5 

Tea  recommended,    228;    comfort  of, 

Tegetthoff,  15,  75  ;  leaves  Bremerhaven, 
74 ;  crew  of,  described,  76  ;  at  Trom- 
soe,  ib.  •  beset,  82 ;  meets  the  Is- 

.  bjbrn,  85  ;  finally  beset,  92 ;  table  of 
course  of,  147  ;  shored  up,  165  ;  aban- 
doned, 348 

Tegetthoff,  Cape,  235,  239,  241,   254, 

353 

Temperature  of  sea,  5,  68,  93 ;  varia- 
tions of,  in  ship,  128;  low,  188,  316 

Thaw  water,  263,  370 

Thirst,  Arctic,  253 

Tobacco,  valuable,  353,  363 

Tonnage  of  different  Arctic  ships,  41 

'Torossy,  3,  234,  276     ; 

Trace  for  each  sledge-dog,  233 

Tromsoe,  54,  76,  77 

Tropical  plants  found  in  Spitzbergen, 
28 

Tusselago  farfara,  381 

Tyrol,  Cape,  265 


INDEX. 


399 


U 


Ukase  granted  by  the  Russian  govern- 
ment, 77 
Umbellula,  269 
Umbilicaria  arctica,  265,  313 
Usnea  melaxantha,  265,  321 


Vegetation  of  Kaiser  Franz-Josef  Land, 

264 

Victory,  stores  of  the,Jn  1829,  42 
Vienna,  Cape,  312 
Volcanic   formation  of  Arctic  regions, 

260 
Voronin,  Feeder,  Captain  of  ti\e  Nikolai, 

384,  388 


W 


Walrus,  the,  266 
Water-sky,  7 


Weyprecht,  Lieut.,  65,  68,   259,  271, 

334 

Whales,  62,  63 ;  white,  266 
White  Sea  crossed,  388 
Willoughby,  26 
Wilczek,  Graf,  49,  69,  85 ;  Island,  181, 

183,  255,  257,  275 
Wine  necessary,  43,  135  ;  chemical,  43  ; 

increased  allowance  of,  214 
Winter  harbour,  19 
Winter  night,  length  of,  200 ;  darkness 

of,  1 86 
Wintering  spots  of  Russian  expeditions, 

382 

Wlillersdorf,   Urbair,  Admiral,  his  re- 
marks on  the  course  of  the  Tegetthoff, 

1 68 


Zanmovich  falls  into  a  crevasse,  300 
Zoological  collection,  343 


THE  END. 


MR.  REWARD'S  LONG-LOOKED-FOR  BIOGRAPHY. 


The  undersigned  take  pleasure  in  announcing  that   they  have  now  ready 

THE    AUTOBIOGRAPHY 


OF 


WILLIAM  HENRY  SEWARD 


(1801-1834), 


With  a  later  Memoir  by  his  Son,  FREDERICK  W.  SEWARD, 
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commenced  the  issue  of,  a  SERIES  OF  POPULAR  MONOGRAPHS,  or  small  works,  under  the  above  title,  which  will  embody  the 
results  of  recent  inquiry  in  the  moat  interesting  departments  of  advancing  science. 

The  character  and  scope  ot  this  series  will  be  best  indicated  by  a  reference  to  the  names  and  subjects  included  in  the  subjoined 
list,  from  which  it  will  be  seen  that  the  cooperation  of  the  most  distinguished  professors  in  England,  Germany,  France,  and  the 
United  States,  has  been  secured,  and  negotiations  are  pending  for  contributions  from  other  eminent  scientific  writers. 

The  works  will  be  issued  simultaneously  in  New  York,  London,  Paris,  Leipsic,  Milan,  and  St.  Petersburg. 

The  INTERNATIONAL  SCIENTIFIC  SERIES  is  entirely  an   American  project,  and  was  originated  and  organized  by  Dr.  E.  L. 
Youmans.  who  spent  the  greater  part  of  a  year  in  Europe,  arranging  with  authors  and  publishers.    The  forthcoming  volumes 
are  as  follows : 
Prof.  W.  KINGDON  CLIFFORD,  M.  A.,  The  First  Principles  of  the       Dr.  EU«ENE  LOMMEL  (University  of  Erlangen),  The  Mature  of 

Exact  Sciences  explained  to  the  Non-Mathematical. 
Prof.  T.  H.  HUXLEY,  LL.  D.,  F.  R.  S.,  Bodily  Motion  and  Con- 
sciousness. 
Dr.  W.  B.  CARPENTER,  LL.  D.,  F.  R.  S.,  The  Physical  Geogra- 

ODLING,  F.  R.  S.,  The  Old  Chemistry  viewed  from 
..  the  New  Stand-point. 

W.  LAUDKR  LINDSAY,  M.  D.,  F.  R.  S.  E.,  Mind  in  the  Lower 
Animals. 

Sir  JOHN  LUBBOCK,  Bart.,  F.  R.  S.,  On  Ants  and  Bees. 

Prof.  W.  T.  THISKLTON  DYER,  B.  A.,  B.  Sc.,  Form  and  Habit  in 
Flowering  Plants. 

Mr.  J.  N.  LOCKYER,  F.  R.  S.,  Spectrum  Analyst*. 

Prof.  MICHAEL  FOSTER,  M.  D.,  Protojilasm  and  the  Cell  Theory. 

H.  CHARLTON  UASTIAN,  M.  D.,  F.  R.  S.,  The  Brain  as  an 
Organ  of  Mind. 

Prof.  A.  C.  RAMSAY,  LL.  D.,  F.  R.  S..  Earth  Sculpure;  Hills, 
Valleys,  Mountains,  Plains,  Hirers,  Lakes;  how  they  were 
produced,  and  how  they  have  been  dfstroued. 

Prot  RUDOLPH  VIRCHOW  (Berlin  University),  Morbid  Physiolo- 
gical Action. 

Prof.  CLAUDE  BERNARD,  Hif'ory  of  the  Theories  of  Life. 

Prof.  H.  SAINT-CLAIRE  DEVILLE,  An  Introduction  to  General 
Chemistry. 

Prof.  WURTZ,  Atoms  and  the  Atomic  Theory. 

Prof.  DE  QUATREFAGES,  The  Human  Raff. 

Prof.  LACAZE-DUTHIHRS.  Zoology  since  Cuvier. 

Prof.  BERTHELOT,  t'hrmieal  Simthesis. 

Prof.  C.  A.  YOUNG,  Ph.  D.  (of  Dartmouth  College).  The  Sun. 

Prof.  OGDEN  N.  ROOD  (Columbia  College,  New  York),  Mod- 
em Chromatics  and  its  Relations  to  Art  and  Industry. 


ProfTwL.'c 


Prof.  J.  ROSENTH AL,  General  Phvsiolooy  of  Muscles  and  AVrret. 
Prof.  JAMES  D.  DANA,  M.  A.,  LL.  D.,  On  Cephalitation ;   or, 

Head-Characters  in  the  Grudation  and  Pr,yrr,»  of  Life. 
Prof.  S.  W.  JOHNSON,  M.  A.,  On  the  Nutrition  ,,f  Plants.  ' 
Prof.  AUSTIN  FLINT,  Jr.,  M.  D.,  The  Nervous  System,  and  itt 


Relation  to  the  Bodily  Fvnetions. 


Prof.  BE 
Prof. 


.  BERNSTEIN  (University  of  Halle),  The  Fire  Senses  of  Mm*. 

'.  FERDINAND    COHN    (Breslau    University),  Thaftoptytet 

(Algae,  Lichens.  Fungi). 
Prof.  HERMANN  (University  of  Zurich),  On  Resr-iration. 
Prof.  LEUCKART  (University  of  Leipsic;,   Outlines  of  Animal 

Prof.  LiEBREicH*(University  of  Berlin),  Outlines  of  Toxicology. 
Prof.  KUNDT  (University  of  Strasburg\  On  Sound. 
Prof.  REES  (University  of  Erlaneen),  On  AfwM 
Prof.  STKINTHAL  (University  of  Berlin),  Outlines 


ity  of  Berlin),  Outlines  of  He  Scitne* 


P.  BERT  (Professor  of  Physiology,  Paris),  Forms  of  Life  and 

other  Cosmical  Conditions. 
E.  ALGLAVB  (Professor  of  Constitutional  and  Administrative 

Law  at  Douai,  and  of  Political  Economy  at  Lille),  The 

Primitive  K/nnent.i  "f  ! 

P.  LORAIN  (Professor  of  Medicine,  Paris),  Mxifrn  Epidemics. 
1'rof.  BOBflmnnan  (Director  of  the  Chemical  Laboratory 

at  the  Sorbpnne),  On  Fermtntalioiu. 
Mons.  FRKIDIL,  The  Functions  of  Organic  Chtmutry. 
Mons.  DEBRAY,  Precious  Metals. 
Prof.  COUFIELD,  M.  A.,  M.  D.  (Oxon.),  Air  in  its  Rtl«io*  h- 

Health. 
Prot  A.  GIARD,  General  Embryology. 

D.  APPLETON  S3  CO.,  Publishers,  549  d-  551  Broadway,  .V.   Y. 


APPLETONS' 

AMERICAN  CYCLOPEDIA 


IREVISEID 

Entirely  .rewritten  by  the  ablest  writers  on  every  subject.      Printed  from  new  type, 
and  illustrated  with  Several  Thousand  Engravings  and  Maps. 

The  work  originally  published  under  the  title  of  THE  NEW  AMERICAN  CYCLOPAEDIA  was 
completed  in  1863,  since  which  time  the  wide  circulation  which  it  has  attained  in  all  parts  of 
the  United  States,  and  the  signal  developments  which  have  taken  place  in  every  branch  of 
science,  literature,  and  art,  have  induced  the  editors  and  publishers  to  submit  it  to  an  exact 
and  thorough  revision,  and  to  issue  a  new  edition  entitled  THE  AMERICAN  CYCLOPAEDIA. 

Within  the  last  ten  years  the  progress  of  discovery  in  every  department  of  knowledge 
has  made  a  new  work  of  reference  an  imperative  want. 

The  movement  of  political  affairs  has  kept  pace  with  the  discoveries  of  science,  and  their 
fruitful  application  to  the  industrial  and  useful  arts  and  the  convenience  and  refinement  of 
social  life.  Great  wars  and  consequent  revolutions  have  occurred,  involving  national  changes 
of  peculiar  moment.  The  civil  war  of  our  own  country,  which  was  at  its  height,  when  the 
last  volume  of  the  old  work  appeared,  has  happily  been  ended,  and  a  new  course  of  com- 
mercial and  industrial  activity  has  been  commenced. 

Large  accessions  to  our  geographical  knowledge  have  been  made  by  the  indefatigable 
explorers  of  Africa. 

The  great  political  revolutions  of  the  last  decade,  with  the  natural  result  of  the  lapse  of 
time,  have  brought  into  public  view  a  multitude  of  new  men,  whose  names  are  in  every 
one's  mouth,  and  of  whose  lives  every  one  is  curious  to  know  the  particulars.  Great  bat- 
tles have  been  fought,  and  important  sieges  maintained,  of  which  the  details  are  as  yet 
preserved  only  in  the  newspapers,  or  in  the  transient  publications  of  the  day,  but  which 
ought  now  to  take  their  place  in  permanent  aud  authentic  history. 

In  preparing  the  present  edition  for  the  press,  it  has  accordingly  been  the  aim  of  the 
editors  to  bring  down  the  information  to  the  latest  possible  dates,  and  to  furnish  an  accurate 
account  of  the  most  recent  discoveries  in  science,  of  every  fresh  production  in  literature,  and 
the  newest  inventions  in  the  practical  arts,  as  well  as  to  give  a  succinct  and  original  record 
of  the  progress  of  political  and  historical  events. 

The  work  has  been  begun  after  long  and  careful  preliminary  labor,  and  with  the  most 


ple  resources  for  carrying  it  on  to  a  successful  termination. 
None  of  the  original  stere 


tereotype  plates  have  been  used,  but  every  page  has  been  printed 
on  new  type,  forming  in  fact  a  new  Cyclopaedia,  with  the  same  plan  and  compass  as  its 

Sredecessor,  but  with  a  far  greater  pecuniary  expenditure,  and  with  such  improvements  in 
;s  composition  as  have  been  suggested  by  longer  experience  and  enlarged  knowledge. 

The  illustrations,  which  are  introduced  for  the  first  time  in  the  present  edition,  have 
been  added  not  for  the  sake  of  pictorial  effect,  but  to  give  greater  lucidity  and  force  to  the 
explanations  in  the  text.  They  embrace  all  branches  of  science  and  of  natural  history,  and 
depict  the  most  famous  and  remarkable  features  of  scenery,  architecture,  and  art,  as  well  as 
the  various  processes  of  mechanics  and  manufactures.  Although  intended  for  instruction 
rather  than  embellishment,  no  pains  have  been  spared  to  insure  their  artistic  excellence  ; 
the  cost  of  their  execution  is  enonnous,  and  it  is  believed  that  they  will  find  a  welcome  re- 
ception as  an  admirable  feature  of  the  Cyclopaedia,  and  worthy  of  its  high  character. 

This  work  _is  sold  to  subscribers  only,  payable  on  delivery  of  each  volume.  It  is 
completed  in  sixteen  large  octavo  volumes,  each  containing  about  800  pages,  fully  illustrated 
with  several  thousand  Wood  Engravings,  and  with  numerous  colored  Lithographic  Maps. 

PRICE    AND    STYLE    OF    BINDING. 


In  extra  cloth,  per  vol.  ....  $5.00 
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*»*  Specimen  pages  of  the  AMERICAN  CYCLOPAEDIA,  showing  type,  illustrations,  etc., 
will  be  sent  gratis,  on  application. 

D.   APPLETON   &   CO.,  PUBLISHERS, 

549  &  551  Broadway,  New  York. 


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